In Eswatini, FAO concludes an evaluation of the national food control system
Last week FAO concluded an eight-month assessment of Eswatini’s food control system with a final workshop in Manzini where high-level policymakers endorsed the assessment report and committed to implementing its recommendations. The assessment is part of "Strengthening of Capacities and Governance in Food and Phytosanitary Control,” a 5-million-euro project funded by the European Union which began in November 2022 to provide technical support and work with Competent Authorities and other leading institutions in 11 African Union Member Countries. The project is designed to build capacities, strengthen governance and improve strategic planning around two main components: food safety and plant health.
The initiative aligns with the Sanitary and Phytosanitary (SPS) Policy Framework for Africa, a framework developed by the African Union (AU) laying the foundations for trade opportunities among AU Member States. This project is implemented in close partnership with the African Commission Division for Rural Economy and Agriculture (AUC DARBE).
Similar assessments were successfully completed in Comoros in August, in Kenya earlier this month, and more recently in the Seychelles. Strategic workshops are scheduled to take place throughout the coming months as the assessments reach their final stages across the participating countries.
Assessment of the national food control system in Eswatini
Project activities in Eswatini, which began with an inception training at the beginning of this year, saw a team of food safety experts from FAO work closely with 32 focal points from local Competent Authorities for food safety to gather and analyse data and information across several dimensions of the food control system. Once the data was collected, the FAO team conducted field visits and interviews with the focal points and relevant stakeholders, reviewed the data, and produced a final report on the country’s food safety control system and recommendations to improve it.
Pivotal to the project was the introduction of the FAO/WHO Food Control System Assessment Tool, a unique instrument developed by FAO and WHO to assess national food control systems in a comprehensive manner, by looking at the entire food chain, including production, distribution, the retail market and consumers.
Ultimately, the assessment aims to assist Eswatini in adhering to international standards that will allow greater harmonization and trade in the region.
Conclusion of the project and the final workshop
The final workshop was the culmination of the assessment, with stakeholders, experts and officials from ministries involved in Eswatini’s food control system convening to review findings and recommendations of the assessment, agree on priorities and develop an action plan to implement them.
Participants of the workshop expressed enthusiasm and satisfaction regarding the project. In an interview, Njabulo Mkhonta from the Ministry of Agriculture said the workshop helped “identify the loose ends, or the areas that we need to improve,” citing as examples the coordination and the implementation of the official controls throughout the whole value chain.
The key moment of the four-day workshop was 22 September when high-level policymakers from ministries across the country’s food control system approved and endorsed the recommendations and a shared vision, committing to implement the strategic action plan stemming from the assessment, promote synergies and engage donors. In his speech, Sydney Simelane, Principal Secretary of the Ministry of Agriculture expressed gratitude to the European Union, FAO and the consultants involved in the project for their effort and dedication towards what he said is considered “a landmark for the country.” He called upon development partners and the business community to assist the government in its efforts to strengthen the country’s food control system.
The next country to conclude the assessment will be Mauritius, where the final workshop is scheduled for October, followed by Rwanda in November. More countries using the FAO/WHO Food Control System Assessment Tool and completing food control assessments contributes to greater adherence to international standards, increased harmonization and more trade in the region.
Read more about the FAO/WHO Food Control System Assessment Tool
Read more about the Kingdom of Eswatini
See the website for the FAO Subregional Office for Southern Africa of which the FAO Eswatini Office is part
Photo: © FAO/Ivor Coglin