Towards a Continent of Safe Food and Thriving Trade: The AU's Ambitious Vision and the Potential Leadership of Nigeria and Kenya

Imagine a future where every plate of food across Africa meets the highest safety standards, protecting consumers, fueling economic growth, and fostering seamless trade. This vision is being actively pursued through the African Union's (AU) ambitious Food Safety Strategy for Africa (FSSA) 2022-2036, and the recent adoption of the statute for a Continental Food Safety Agency marks a crucial step towards realizing this goal.

For organizations like the Food and Agriculture Export Alliance (FAEA), this initiative resonates deeply with our core mission. We believe in fostering safe and high-quality agricultural trade, and the AU's commitment to a unified food safety framework, outlined in the FSSA, provides a roadmap for achieving this vision.

Currently, the food safety landscape across Africa presents significant challenges. The diverse regulatory frameworks of the 55 AU member states, with varying levels of stringency and enforcement, can create barriers to trade and hinder the development of regional value chains. The FSSA directly addresses these issues with a clear set of strategic objectives:

• Strengthening food policy, legal, and institutional frameworks: This involves harmonizing regulations, building robust institutions, and creating a supportive legal environment for food safety.

• Strengthening the human and infrastructure capacity of food control systems: This focuses on investing in training, technology, laboratory facilities, and inspection services.

• Promoting a food safety culture, evidence-based advocacy, communication, and information sharing: This aims to raise consumer awareness, empower informed choices, and foster collaboration among stakeholders.

• Improving trade and market access at national, regional, continental, and global levels: This seeks to reduce technical barriers to trade, enhance the competitiveness of African products, and expand market opportunities.

• Strengthening research, innovation, technology development, and transfer: This emphasizes the importance of science and technology in advancing food safety practices.

• Establishing and strengthening coordination mechanisms and enhancing cooperation at national, regional, continental, and global levels: This underscores the need for collaboration and information sharing across all levels.

  
  

The FSSA's 2022-2036 timeline provides a clear framework for action, outlining the steps needed to achieve these ambitious objectives. As the AU moves forward with the establishment of a continental food safety agency, a Africa Food Safety Agency, it's crucial to recognize the potential leadership role of nations like Nigeria and Kenya.

FAEA has been actively working in both Nigeria and Kenya to modernize their food and feed safety policies and laws. These updated frameworks, while currently pending implementation, align with the very principles outlined in the FSSA. They prioritize evidence-based decision-making, risk-based approaches and alignment with international best practices.

If Nigeria and Kenya successfully implement these progressive laws, they will not only enhance food safety within their own borders but also provide tangible examples for other AU member states. Their experiences in navigating regulatory reform, incorporating scientific principles, and engaging stakeholders can serve as a valuable blueprint for the continental agency.

The challenges in establishing a harmonized food safety system across Africa are undeniable. However, with the commitment of member states, the guidance of the FSSA, and the potential leadership of nations like Nigeria and Kenya, the vision of a continent united for safe food and thriving trade may be within reach.