The document was developed by UNIDO following a countrywide engagement and stakeholder consultation with funding from the European Union with support from WACCOMP and WHO.
Addressing the gathering, Mamudou Bah, Director General of Food Safety and Quality Authority, said the policy would strengthen food safety governance in The Gambia as well as promote and ensure the harmonisation of institutional coordination and collaboration.
Saikou Suwareh Jabai, National Communication and Visibility Experts, representing the United Nations Industrial Development Organization (UNIDO), reminded that the establishment of effective food safety systems is pivotal in ensuring the safety of national food supplies as well as food products for regional and international trade.
The development and validation of the national food safety policy, he added, is an essential component of Gambia's efforts at attaining an effective food safety and quality system.
Representing the European Union delegation in The Gambia, Lumana Kasmashi, expressed EU’s commitment to supporting projects and programmes to ensure they are used in evidence-based policy approach to ensure food and safety quality.
“Ín order to ensure that food consumed locally and internationally is safe and sound, a country needs to put in place the required political, legal and institutional framework.”
Kasmashi acknowledged that such a policy is essential for sustainable services in ensuring optimal use of scarce resources for developing countries.
Sereign Fallou Njie, stepping in for the Permanent Secretary at the Office of the Vice President, described the move as a step in the direction towards attaining effective and efficient food control system in The Gambia.
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