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: an opportunity for the Government of Uganda to promote safe food throughout the food chain
World Food Safety Day messages were delivered this year by ministers and experts in Uganda, who encouraged food business operators throughout the supply chain to help improve food safety within the country. The messages were delivered through TV and print media and a three-day training course was implemented “for food business operators and regulators in collaboration with the Ministry of Agriculture, Animal Industries and Fisheries”, according to The New Vision news outlet. The activities were organized as part of the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA)-supported Trade of Agriculture Safely and Efficiently in East Africa (TRASE) project.
The World Food Safety Day celebrations kicked off on 7 June 2022 with the national Television UBC TV airing a message on food safety, after the evening news bulletin. It featured Former Minister of Agriculture and current Chairperson of the governing board of Uganda Agribusiness Alliance, Victoria Sekitoleko, raising awareness and mobilizing action for food safety along the various value chains. On 8 June 2022, the Minister of State for Animal Industry, Bright Rwamirama gave a press briefing on World Food Safety Day. The briefing was aired on different TV and radio stations. In addition, there were two radio talk shows, a two-page pull-out in the national daily newspaper, The New Vision, short videos and T-shirts.
The training workshop on food safety management specifically gave instruction in the International Organization for Standardization standard, ISO 22000. The course trainer was Food Safety and Quality Expert Beatrice Opiyo and the workshop took place 13–16 July in Kampala, Uganda and attracted food business operators, who were awarded attendance certificates.
Find out more
https://newvisionapp.page.link/PbCRhBEhWetrQMF26
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