African countries particularly those in the ECOWAS sub-region and the Sahel have been urged to harmonize their food safety regulations to help tackle trade barriers across the continent.
Regulators in the food safety market are in Ghana for the 2nd coordination meeting of the regional food safety regulatory convergence and food safety network meeting aimed at granting them information and capacity building on emerging SPS related issues.
Speaking at the opening of the meeting, Coordinator, Economics, Trade and Marketing Unit, African Union – Inter African Bureau for Animal Resources (AU-IBAR), John Oppong-Otoo says the food safety regulatory convergence is essential in ensuring the health and well-being people on the continent.
“Food safety is not merely a matter of public health; it is one of the pillars upon which the prosperity and resilience of our continent rest. Evidence from various studies and as core, the direct correlation between food safety standards and the reduction in the prevalence of food bond diseases. Africa bears the highest value in our food borne diseases globally. We certainly need to reduce this level to acceptable levels.”, he encouraged.
John Oppong-Otoo adds that the harmonization would not only improve health but is essential to facilitate trade.
“But convergence is not just about ensuring public health, it also underpins trade facilitation as well. The barriers to trade particularly non-tariff barriers. There may be differences in food regulations and known can pose significant non-tariff barriers to trade. And this has long been an impediment to the economic growth and rich integration within Africa. So, by harmonizing food safety regulations, we tackle these barriers head on, reducing the cost and complexity of cross-border trade for business people. Regulatory convergence facilitates smoother, more efficient trade flows enabling African businesses to expand their market and compete more effectively on the global stage.”, he added.
Coordinator of the CODEX Coordinating Committee for AFRICA, Hakim Mufumbiro on his part emphasized the responsibility of the different ECOWAS member states in ensuring food produced are of international standards.
“The different member states in the ECOWAS and Sahel regions have a responsibility of protection of health, safety, wealth, the environment, fraud prevention and promotion of a trade which is a prerequisite for trade on equal terms as products and services are able to move freely and circulate in the region without undergoing extensive conformant assessment”, he said.
“This presents a good opportunity for the different regions to be able to focus and provide sustainable solutions in ensuring that we avert these food safety challenges that we live with on a regular basis.”, he concluded.
Speaking on behalf of the minister of Food and Agriculture, Dr. Bryan Acheampong, Deputy Minister in charge of crops, Yaw Frimpong Addo charged the meeting to formulate best practices that would help the continent capitalize on the AFCFTA.
“The African-continental-free trade area encourages us to increase inter-intra regional trade and this platform is offering us with the opportunity to share international best practices for the coordination and management of food safety issues.”, he added.
This second annual of the food safety convergence forum meeting will review the level of implementation of priority food safety recommendations for the region, identify capacity building needs, and discuss emerging SPS related matters and food safety issues that pose a significant impact on the expansion of the trade in the region as well as share international best practices for the coordination and management of food.
Source: Ghana/Starrfm.com.gh/103.5FM/Edem Kojo
