EAC embarks on capacity building for plant health inspectors

31Jan 2022
By Guardian Reporter
Features
The Guardian
EAC embarks on capacity building for plant health inspectors

​​​​​​​THE East African Community (EAC) secretariat has embarked on capacity building on Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs) for plant health inspectors at its One-Stop Border Posts (OSBPs) to ensure the region is protected from threats of pest infestation against key agricultural commodities.

EAC Director of Productive and Social Sectors, Jean Baptiste Havugimana.

The SOPs were developed to operationalize the Pest Risk Analysis (PRAs) for maize, beans and rice that are the most widely traded in the region.

Speaking at the opening of the capacity building workshop for plant health inspectors at the Kabanga—Kobero OSBP bordering Tanzania and Burundi, EAC Director of Productive and Social Sectors, Jean Baptiste Havugimana, said that the initiative on Pest Risk Analysis (PRAs) commenced more than one decade ago.

“The first activity we embarked on was the development of pest lists. The second stage entailed development, validation and adoption of PRAs for maize, beans and rice,” said Havugimana, adding that the Sectoral Council on Agriculture and Food Security held in June 2021 adopted the SOPs for operationalizing the PRAs three key agricultural commodities.

“Utilization and application of the SOPs at the border points by plant health inspectors is a turning point in the entire process,” said Havugimana.

He added that the capacity-building workshops were meant to induct plant health inspectors at key OSBPs and ensure that they have a clear and deep understanding of the procedures contained in the inspection manual.

Speaking at the occasion, the Kabanga-Kobero Tanzania Revenue Authority Station Manager, Elpidius Bigirwamungu, hailed the capacity building workshop noting that it was of significant importance to the customs operations at the border.

In her remarks delivered on behalf of the US Department of Agriculture (USDA), Esther Muchiri, the Regional Coordinator at the Africa Food Safety Initiative (AFSI), disclosed that AFSI, which is funded by USDA, had been designed to support interventions in the areas of Sanitary and Phytosanitary Measures (SPS) – plant health, food safety and maximum residue levels.

Muchiri said that USDA had made arrangements for procurement and donation of essential items to support the work of inspectors at the Kabanga-Kobero and other OSBPs.

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