5. The opening ceremony began with welcome remarks from the Minister of Health and Child Welfare of Zimbabwe, the Honourable Dr P.D. Parirenyatwa. In his remarks, he underlined the importance of food safety as well as food security and the need for appropriate strategies and regulations to address, in particular, the issues of street foods and the monitoring of food imports and exports. The text of his address is appended as Annex 3.
6. In his opening remarks on behalf of FAO, Mr Hartwig de Haen, Assistant Director-General, Economic and Social Department, informed the conference of the series of regional and global events that FAO and WHO are jointly organizing to provide fora for food safety officials to share information on national experiences in regulating and promoting food safety. He highlighted the importance of food safety for all people, in the interest of food security, public health and economic efficiency and competitiveness. He recalled the challenges for the countries of the region to improve the efficiency and effectiveness of their food control systems and the specific conditions of the region, which increase the potential of food safety risks. Mr de Haen further informed the conference of various actions taken by FAO, in partnership with WHO and other organizations, to assist member countries in their efforts to improve food safety and quality and reiterated his Organization’s readiness to further expand its capacity building programme to assist the countries of the region in this field, if funds become available. The text of his speech is appended in Annex 4.
7. Dr Chris Mwikisa, Director, Division of Healthy Environments and Sustainable Development in the WHO African Regional Office, welcomed the participants on behalf of WHO. The speaker noted that consumers in the region are experiencing considerable changes in the way food is produced and processed; yet the regulatory tools have changed minimally. He emphasized the importance of food-borne disease surveillance and food monitoring for policy advice and planning of food safety programmes. The speaker recalled that in May 2000, the World Health Assembly endorsed food safety as an essential public health issue and referred to WHO’s Global Strategy for Food Safety as well as Resolution AFR/RC53/R5 endorsed by the WHO Regional Committee for Africa in 2003, which provide guidance to Member States on food safety matters. Dr Mwikisa detailed the activities being carried out by WHO in the countries of the region and stated that ensuring food safety not only improves the health of the consumer but increases food exports and thus contributes to the achievement of some of the Millennium Development Goals. He concluded by reiterating WHO’s commitment to contribute to improving the safety of food for Africans, despite the many challenges. The text of his address is appended as Annex 5.
8. The conference was officially opened by His Excellency, Robert Mugabe, President of the Republic of Zimbabwe, who thanked FAO and WHO for providing Zimbabwe the honour of hosting this conference and for their work in improving food safety in the region, particularly in Zimbabwe. He underscored the timeliness of the conference, as developing countries are increasingly facing challenges in the areas of food safety, food security and emerging food-borne diseases. The President noted that the challenges to food safety in the region are compounded by the HIV/AIDS pandemic. It was noted that the increasing popularity of street foods, influx of new food technologies and the sub-standard food products in the markets all contributed to the increased attention to food safety. The President also emphasized the need to enhance agricultural development on the continent. He highlighted Zimbabwe’s commitment to food safety, as evidenced by its active participation and contribution to the work of the Codex Alimentarius Commission, the World Organization for Animal Health and the International Plant Protection Convention. The President concluded his speech by expressing his hope that the conference would enable the countries of the region to implement workable and realistic actions to improve food safety and also impel countries to include food safety as part of their national development goals. The text of his speech is appended as Annex 6.
9. The Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development of Zimbabwe, the Honourable J. Made, closed the ceremony with a note of thanks in which he reiterated the need for the conference to address and facilitate the implementation of practical actions to improve food safety in the region. The text of his address is appended as Annex 7.
