COMESA develops strategic agro- industry road map
MBABANE - Players in the agro- industry sector are said have developed a strategic road map for implementation within the COMESA, starting this year.
Eswatini is a member of the Common Market for Eastern and Southern Africa ( COMESA) alongside 20 other African countries.
As part of the initiative, member States within t he t rading bloc are expected to strengthen national regulations and enforcement mechanism to curb counterfeit seed trade.
COMESA said on its part, it was expected to develop a regional regulation on anti- illicit trade to provide a crossborder framework for engagement and collaboration.
“Stakeholders in the agro- industry in collaboration with the COMESA Business Council ( CBC) have developed a road map to be implemented from this year aimed at promoting the industry,” said the bloc in a latest statement.
“Among the activities identified i s t he development of a r egi onal anti- illicit policy and implementation framework, which will include sensitisation of industry players on the need to establish a track and trace system at national and/ or regional level.”
Furthermore, t he CBC will seek funds or technical assistance to undertake a study on the development of a mutual recognition framework for pre- packaged food in the COMESA region.
The economic bloc said the above were part of the output of a one- day workshop for the CBC agro- industry workgroup held last week.
A regional beverages association is also planned to strengthen regional industry coordination, supply chain partnerships, and represent the industry’s position in engagements with the public sector.
C B C C h a i r p e r s o n , Gu i l l a u me Hugnin, who is also Mauritius Chamber of Commerce President has said, strong pursuit of key advocacy issues in support of the industry was crucial amid the challenges brought forth by COVID- 19.
“Continuous collaboration with the public sector and also strengthening public- private dialogue to address the emerging issues in the agriculture sector is crucial,” he was quoted as saying.
CBC Chi e f Ex e c u t i v e Off i c e r, Ms Sandra Uwera, highlighted the important role of women as a link within the chain of agriculture, industry, and trade.
Agriculture
“Agriculture is the backbone of the economy in COMESA. It provides l i vel i hoods f or a bout 80 per c e nt of t he r egi on’s l abour f or ce, and accounts for about 65 per cent of f oreign exchange earnings i n t he region,” said Uwera.
During the virtual workshop several targets were agreed upon, which i ncluded t he need for t he CBC t o r eview t he r egulatory r egime f or plastic waste management for t he COMESA member States.
It is hoped this will help determine the impact of environmental degradation on the businesses. Formation of an aquaculture sub- workgroup of agro- industry was also discussed.