The CCAFRICA Region - Regional Coordinator Uganda
The ‘Coordinating Committee for Africa’ was established by the Codex Alimentarius Commission in 1972 with a mandate to “exercise general coordination in the preparation of standards relating to the region of Africa”. The committee held its first meeting at FAO in 1974, with 19 countries in attendance.
As the new regional coordinator begins their term, the Agreement of the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA), which came into effect in May 2020, has reinforced the need for an efficient and effective system for managing sanitary and phytosanitary measures, in particular food safety, across the continent as its borders open for trade.
The regional coordinator is based in the Uganda National Bureau of Standards, a statutory body under the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Co-operatives which oversees, as part of its mandate, the promotion and use of standards.
As regional coordinator, Uganda intends to engage closely with countries via surveys, webinars and workshops to identify needs and emerging issues, create awareness of priority food safety issues and of Codex standards. A pilot study will also explore the food safety situation in broader terms across the region. By strengthening engagement with regional bodies such as the African Union, the African Organisation for Standardisation and the African Continental Free Trade Area Secretariat, Uganda also aims to enhance advocacy work in the region.
CCAFRICA Coordinator
All information on Codex is public and free.
For regional enquiries contact:
CCAFRICA Secretariat
Uganda National Bureau of Standards Plot 2 - 12, Bypass Link, Industrial
& Business park, Kyaliwajala road,
P.O Box 6329 Kampala, Uganda
Tel: +256 (041) 7333250 / 0417333251 / 0417333252
Email: [email protected]
Web: www.unbs.go.ug
World Food Safety Day given a high profile in Tanzania
In Tanzania, representatives of government, the World Health Organization (WHO) and Non-Government Organizations (NGOs) were all active across mainstream and social media on 7 June to promote World Food Safety Day.
In a televised press conference, Rose Shija Muhangwa, on behalf of the WHO representative to Tanzania and Bwana Gervas Kaisi, Acting Director of Quality Control at the Tanzania Bureau of Standards (TBS) held a joint press conference in which they each highlighted the collective responsibility of keeping food safe. “Citizens have a responsibility to ensure that the food they buy is safe before eating or preparing it. It is important for consumers to inspect food to ensure that it is not spoiled or about to expire,” said Gervas Kaisi, reiterating that diseases caused by unsafe food can be prevented if everyone fulfills their role in the food chain. This message was reinforced at the press conference by TBS Senior Food Safety Officer, Immaculata Justin and TBS Senior Food Security Officer, Kaiza Kilango.
The issue of food labelling was raised by Gervas Kaisi, and also in parliament, by Neema Lugangira, Member of Parliament representing NGOs on the Tanzanian Mainland. In a tweet on 7 June, she reported her request to the Minister of Industry and Trade, Professor Kitila Mkumbo, to introduce food labelling regulations in Tanzania. “And Hon. Minister agreed” she tweeted.
Muhangwa, WHO focal person for essential medicines including food safety in Tanzania, quoted World Bank statistics ... on the cost of unsafe food saying it costs low- and middle-income countries USD 95 billion annually. In a nod to this year’s theme, “safe food now for a healthy tomorrow,” she also said: "Access to safe and healthy food can be enhanced in the future by embracing digital innovation, developing scientific solutions and respecting traditional knowledge that has endured and brought productivity at various times."
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