The Southern African Development Community (SADC) is committed to fostering regional coordination and harmonisation of food standards and regulations to prevent foodborne diseases, reduce the risk of food contamination, and safeguard the integrity of food.
In his official opening remarks at the 14th SADC Food Safety Technical Committee Meeting being held from 10th to 12th October 2023, Lusaka Zambia, SADC Director for Industrial Development and Trade (IDT), Mr. Dhunraj Kassee said one in ten people in the world falls ill and 420,000 people die every year after eating contaminated food. 40% of children under five years of age carry the burden of foodborne diseases, with 125,000 deaths every year. “SADC Member States commit to cooperate in developing and implementing effective measures that respond to threats of food contamination to protect lives and livelihoods while at the same time reducing differences in these measures, which may result in barriers to trade” he said.
The 14th SADC Food Safety Technical Committee Meeting is jointly organised by the SADC Secretariat, through the European Union (EU) funded Trade Facilitation Programme (TFP) and the African Union Commission (AUC) to promote the protection of public health, economic development, and international trade.
In 2019, the AU published a common Sanitary (human or animal life or health) and (plant life or health) Phytosanitary (SPS) Policy Framework for Africa which recognises the importance of reducing barriers to trade. The SPS Policy Framework aligns with the objectives of the African Continental Free Trade Agreement (AfCFTA) and recognises the economic potential of the agriculture and food sector particularly in the intra-African cross border trade. The AU Commission therefore perceives this Meeting as a critical entry point of initiating actions to improve cooperation with SADC structures related to food safety.
The AUC Senior Sanitary and Phytosanitary Advisor, Mr. Chiluba Mwape encouraged SADC Member States to increase investments in building capacity of all actors in the food value chain to improve compliance with food standards. He further underscored that “The African Union renews her commitment to prioritise food safety and together, we can build resilient and sustainable African food systems for improved food security, nutrition and safe trade in line with the implementation of the AfCFTA”.
This Meeting which attracted attendance of representatives of food safety national focal points from 13 SADC Member States is expected to validate reports on food safety which are SPS Policy: Framework/Guidelines for Enabling Imported Food Products to be Inspected and Sampled at the Point of Entry into SADC for on-site resolution of trade barriers and the report on Guidelines for Member States harmonisation of SPS measures – Food Safety.
The SADC Food Safety Technical Committee will review country reports of Member States on how they have progressed in developing domestic food policies and standards. Representatives of the bodies responsible for food safety will share experiences and specific trade concerns as well as discuss unresolved Non Tarrif Barriers. The African Union Commission will present on the AU SPS Policy Framework and the Food Safety Strategy for Africa, in an endeavour to assist the SADC Food Safety Technical Committee to benchmark with continental developments. This comes after a realisation that the SADC Region is facing several challenges related to food safety and the measures associated with ensuring food safety. Member States are encouraged to make use of new developments in technology to provide better information and intelligence related to foodborne diseases and design, implement, and track targeted measures to deal with them efficiently and effectively.
