Technical experts and key stakeholders from the food safety, animal and plant health sub-sectors, yesterday, concluded a meeting in Mombassa, Kenya, aimed at promoting vigilance of Sanitary and Phytosanitary (SPS) standards in the region.

SPS measures aim at protecting consumers through safeguarding of plant health, animal health and food safety.

Enforcement of the SPS measures and procedures at all stages of the value chain enhances regional trade and promotes access to the international markets.

The one week meeting convened by the African Union – Inter-African Bureau of Animal Resources (AU-IBAR) was meant to engage sanitary and phytosanitary standards-setting organizations in EAC partner states with the aim of increasing their involvement in the participation of African Nations in Sanitary and Phytosanitary Standard Setting Organization (PAN-SPSO) project.

At the meeting, the Director General of EAC Customs and Trade Directorate, Dr. Peter Kiguta, noted that partner states have not been very successful in accessing lucrative regional and international markets for agro-products notably because of non-compliance to international standards and regulations.

"Unfortunately, with regard to Sanitary and Phytosanitary Agreement, to which our Partner States are signatories, lack of participation by our technical and policy staff has been identified as the major cause of low compliance to Sanitary and Phytosanitary (SPS) standards,” Kiguta said.

He noted that the rules laid down in SPS Agreements require that the standards developed by the Codex Alimentarius Commission (CAC), World Organization for Animal Health (OIE) and International Plant Protection Convention (IPPC) for human, animal and plant health, were of international standing and it was imperative that the Partner States actively participate in their formulation and setting.

"Effective participation would provide our countries with opportunity to understand new standards, provide clues on how to efficiently and effectively implement and assess their impact on national production, consumption, and trade of the agricultural commodities in question, and what actions to take to comply or demonstrate compliance with SPS measures,” affirmed Dr. Kiguta.

Dr. Raphael Coly, representing the Director of the African Union Inter-African Bureau for Animal Resources (AU-IBAR), informed participants that the regional workshops were organized and implemented within the scope of the memorandum of understanding and the contract agreement signed between the EAC Secretariat and AU-IBAR on behalf of the five Partner States.

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