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
CCAFRICA / Webinar on FAO/WHO Diagnostic Tool for assessing status of National Codex Programmes
The Codex Trust Fund Secretariat in collaboration with the FAO/WHO Coordinating Committee for Africa (CCAFRICA) and the FAO and WHO Regional Offices for Africa held a highly engaging webinar on 5 July 2021 with a focus on the use of the FAO/WHO Diagnostic Tool for assessing status of National Codex Programmes. The Tool is key to determining strengths and weaknesses at country level and the results help identify areas for capacity development. Over 50 participants attended online both from CCAFRICA and beyond.
The main objectives of the session were to guide participants through the content and methodology of the FAO/WHO Diagnostic Tool, provide deeper insights on how the tool is intended to be used, sharing lessons learned as well as hear about developments within the FAO/WHO Codex Trust Fund (CTF). The webinar provided an opportunity for countries implementing ongoing CTF projects including Ghana and Senegal to share their experience in using the tool - an essential pre-requisite when applying to the fund - and motivate other countries who are yet to do so.
The webinar was timely as the next round of applications for CTF will open on 1 September 2021 with a deadline for submission on 17 December 2021 and up to 23 Countries from the CCAFRICA region are eligible for support. A total of 54 countries from all the Codex regions are eligible for support.
A representative of the Codex Secretariat encouraged Member States in the CCFARICA region to fully utilise the available support to enhance capacity of national Codex systems in order to better engage in the international standards setting activities.
The CCAFRICA Coordinator underscored the importance of engaging in the process in order to take advantage of the support provided through the CTF framework that will go a long way in building strong, solid and sustainable national capacity to engage in Codex.
Representatives of the FAO and WHO Regional Offices for Africa reiterated the importance of continued capacity development activities in the region and committed to support member countries while preparing applications to the trust fund.
A call was made to all eligible countries by the CTF Secretariat to start the application for support early in order to ensure effective consultations and engagements at national level are undertaken. Representatives from CTF Donor Countries further encouraged the CCAFRICA region to continue strengthening national systems in order to influence outcomes at the Codex level.
Learn more
More information about the Codex Trust Fund can be obtained on: https://www.who.int/initiatives/codex-trust-fund
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