The Governments of South Africa and New Zealand will join forces when the two countries host a workshop on: “Food Safety Systems for Export” on 2 and 3 September 2014. The workshop will address this critical issue within the Southern Africa Development Community (SADC), through the participation of experts from South Africa, New Zealand, SADC member states, as well as Kenya and Uganda.The South African Minister of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries, the Honourable Mr Senzeni Zokwana and New Zealand High Commissioner to South Africa, His Excellency Mr Richard Mann, will open the event at the Department of International Relations and Cooperation’s (DIRCO’s) OR Tambo Building.

The workshop aims to share experience and expertise with southern African countries in export sectors in which both New Zealand and South Africa have a track record of successful performance (i.e. agriculture/fisheries), and is of relevance and interest to countries in the region. Most African countries are focused on increasing the quantity and quality of their agricultural exports and seek to better address market access and compliance issues they often have with new and existing export markets.

Workshop content will focus on offering practical solutions for key industry players and government officials dealing with food safety issues. This will also be an opportunity to showcase New Zealand and South African producers’ robust and world-leading “farm to fork” and “grass to glass” food safety standards and legislation. Kenya, Botswana and the Seychelles will present case studies on challenges and successes they have had in their horticulture, red meat and seafood export sectors. Key regional multilateral organisations, such as the Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO), SADC, New Partnership for Africa’s Development (NEPAD), the African Development Bank and the Global Food Safety Initiative will also participate.

This trilateral initiative came as a result of a meeting in 2013 between the Foreign Minister of New Zealand, Minister Murray McCully, and the Minister of International Relations and Cooperation of South Africa, Minister Maite Nkoana-Mashabane, where they agreed that the two countries should cooperate in the field of agriculture, focusing on issues affecting the SADC region. Both South Africa and New Zealand express the hope that the workshop will assist the region to increase agricultural exports as part of overall efforts to enhance Africa’s economic growth and social development.