The CCNASWP Region
Regional Coordinator Fiji
The 18th session of the Codex Alimentarius Commission, held in 1989, agreed to establish a new Coordinating Committee for North America and the South West Pacific, bringing together, in the words of the New Zealand delegation "far flung countries ... which have many common interests".
CCNASWP is a remarkably diverse region combining fully mature economies such as the USA, Canada, Australia and New Zealand with 10 small island states. The largest of these is Papua New Guinea (population over 7 million) and the smallest, the Cook Islands and Nauru with populations of around 10 000.
The regional coordinator is based within the Fijian Ministry of Agriculture.
Fiji looks forward to applying standards at the national level and supporting all countries in the region, especially the small island developing states, to establish a sound policy framework for food safety. These initiatives will support improvements in public health, ensure that imported food is safe and of the expected quality and develop increased access to international markets.
The regional coordinator will continue supporting work on regional standards and seeks to strengthen participation of the region in Codex in general. This can be achieved by continuing to develop capacity at the national level by enhancing the role of national coordinators and contact points for increased and effective participation in Codex.
CCNASWP Coordinator
All information on Codex is public and free.
For regional enquiries contact:
CCNASWP Secretariat
Ministry of Agriculture
Private Mail Bag
Hugh Robinson Complex
Raiwaqa,
Suva.
Email: [email protected]
Web: www.agriculture.gov.fj
North America and South-West Pacific ready to tackle new challenges
Members from one of the most diverse regions in Codex met online on 26 May 2020 to review the status of the disrupted Codex meeting schedule and explore how to best proceed with work in the committee ahead of the next session.
Timothy Tumukon, Vanuatu, Regional Coordinator, for the Coordinating Committee for North America and the South West Pacific (CCNASWP), said attendance from around the globe “showed the commitment from all countries to work of Codex and food safety, especially in our region”.
Elisapeta Madar, Samoa, said “the meeting was fruitful and successful as we get to know updates on what has been happening in Codex. We are happy to attend to more virtual meetings in the future to update us with the two regional standards”.
The agenda focused on sharing details of which meetings may still be held in 2020 including the Executive Committee and the Codex Alimentarius Commission itself. Participants also discussed what impact the COVID-19 pandemic was having on the Codex programme and the options for committees if it will not be possible to hold physical meetings.
“In these challenging times convening an informal virtual meeting of CCNASWP was a useful way to share information about plans to keep the work of Codex happening. At the end of the day if currently meeting virtually to get through Codex business is the safe way to do it, so be it”, said Usha Sriram-Prasad, Australia.
The pandemic is inspiring us all to find new ways to communicate
“The United States very much appreciated the opportunity to meet virtually with colleagues in CCNASWP. Our region faces real communications and travel challenges in the best of times”, said a member of the United States team present at the meeting. “The pandemic is inspiring us all to find new ways to communicate and work, and there may be benefits to having more informal exchanges between NASWP sessions using these technologies, including perhaps electronic working group exchanges”.
Sridhar Dharmapuri is an FAO Senior Food Safety and Nutrition Officer in the region. “It is wonderful to note that the commitment and enthusiasm to build on the successful formulation of two regional standards (kava and noni) remains unaffected by the pandemic. With huge distances between members of CCNASWP, virtual meetings may well be the present and the future of Codex deliberations”, he said.
“The video-conference, which brought together Codex Members from countries spanning over a 12-hour time zone, provided an opportunity to get first-hand updates and connect with Codex colleagues” said Hilde Kruse, from the Codex Secretariat. “The great attendance, enthusiasm and feedback from participants illustrated that such meetings are appreciated and should be repeated. It would be useful to go further into technical issues in a future videoconference.”
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