WHO, FAO Support Cross-Sector Food Safety Emergency Response in Africa, Middle East
The World Health Organization (WHO) and the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), alongside other international partners, recently convened a two-day virtual session to strengthen multisectoral food safety emergency preparedness and response planning in Africa and the Middle East.
The session brought together 352 participants from more than 40 countries to discuss approaches to developing, implementing, and testing national food safety emergency response plans, as well as challenges related to institutional coordination and emergency preparedness.
The event was jointly organized by the WHO regional offices for Africa and the Eastern Mediterranean; the FAO regional offices for Africa and the Near East and North Africa; the Codex Coordinating Committees for Africa and the Near East; and the FAO/WHO International Food Safety Authorities Network (INFOSAN) Secretariat.
Participants discussed the importance of integrating food safety emergency response plans into existing national public health emergency management, disaster risk management, and food control systems. Such integration would also support core capacities required under the International Health Regulations 2005 (IHR), including the detection, assessment, notification, and management of food safety incidents.
Countries were encouraged to assess existing emergency response arrangements, update national contact lists, and establish multisectoral coordination groups involving public health, food safety, agriculture, veterinary services, laboratories, regulatory authorities, and risk communication experts.
Using the FAO/WHO Framework for Developing National Food Safety Emergency Response Plans, countries can develop or update plans that clearly define emergency activation criteria, institutional responsibilities, decision-making authority, risk assessment procedures, and communication protocols.
The session also emphasized the importance of regularly conducting tabletop and simulation exercises to identify preparedness gaps and test coordination mechanisms. Scenarios involving climate-related disasters, humanitarian emergencies, and food supply chain disruptions were highlighted as opportunities to evaluate national response capabilities and international information exchange through INFOSAN.
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Technical experts from food safety authorities and institutions in Canada, Germany, Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Senegal, and Morocco shared practical experiences and lessons learned from food safety emergency response activities.
Overall, the session highlighted the need for countries to move beyond developing emergency response plans toward formally adopting, operationalizing, and regularly testing them, supported by continued regional cooperation and technical knowledge exchange.
