A Regional Conference on Food Safety for Africa, jointly convened by the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) and the World Health Organization (WHO), took place from 3 to 6 October 2005 in Harare, Zimbabwe, at the decision of the group of permanent representatives of the African region to FAO in Rome. Over 185 participants from 45 member countries of Africa, along with observers from two member countries outside the region and nine international governmental and non-governmental organizations participated in the conference, which was designed to i) facilitate dynamic and sustainable communication on continuing and emerging food safety issues important to all countries of the African region and identify harmonized, practical and sustainable actions to address these issues; ii) identify opportunities for improving international and regional cooperation in promoting food safety in order to protect consumers and their health and to develop positive food trade relations, taking into account the prevailing conditions in the entire food chain; iii) promote the strengthening and/or the establishment of regional and sub-regional networks for the exchange of food safety-related information and experiences among all stakeholders; iv) encourage public/private partnerships for consumer awareness raising, capacity building, and food safety issues in general; and v) identify strengths in specific subjects of food safety within the region and means to utilize these strengths as part of an over-arching policy to continuously improve food safety.
Countries have recognized the need for increased national attention and international, regional and national cooperation to strengthen food safety systems in the countries of the region. Within this context, the conference unanimously adopted a resolution recommending a nine-point Five-year Strategic Plan for Food Safety in Africa for adoption by UN food and health agencies and the African Union, including numerous recommendations of practical actions to strengthen food safety systems in the region. The key elements of the plan include the following:
The conference agreed that its bureau, along with representatives of FAO and WHO, would constitute the follow-up committee that would ensure the monitoring of the implementation of the strategic plan.
