22nd GA : Group picture

REPORT OF 22nd GENERAL ASSEMBLY

1. OPENING CEREMONY

The 22nd General Assembly of the Inter-African Phytosanitary Council (IAPSC) held from the 19th to 23rd March 2006 in Cairo Egypt. It was jointly sponsored by the IAPSC of the African Union and the Government of Egypt. The official opening of the Assembly was presided over by DR. Saad Nassar, on behalf of His Excellency, Mr. Amin Abaza, Egyptian Minister of Agriculture and land reclamation.

Dr. A. Babagana & Dr. K. Koumba

The Director of the Department of Rural Economy and Agriculture, Dr. Amadou Babagana, welcomed the participants and in his remarks, he thanked the international partners who have contributed to the implementation of IAPSC programs in terms of capacity building and staff development at the IAPSC and in member states. He urged the Assembly to ensure that the activities entrusted to the Inter-African Phytosanitary Council fall within the terms of reference of the office ; that they reflect the Strategic Plan of the Commission's Department of rural Economy and Agriculture which falls within the Sirte Declaration. The President of the Mansura University, Prof. Dr. El Shaboury also welcomed the participants and wished them successful deliberations. The Director of the IAPSC also welcomed the delegates to Cairo and looked forward to fruitful deliberations.

Egyptian officials

In His remarks, the guest of honor, the representative of the Minister of Agriculture and land reclamation declared the meeting open.

2. ADOPTION OF THE AGENDA

The General Assembly considered the draft agenda (Annex 1) and adopted it with minor amendments.

3. PROCEEDINGS OF THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY

Election of the Bureau of the 22nd General Assembly

AU & Egyptian officials

Egypt, being the host country, assumed the Chairmanship of the Assembly. Nigeria was elected as Vice-Chairman. The Rapporteurs were Algeria, South Africa, Uganda and Kenya.

Opening ceremony

4. Report by The Steering Committee And Discussion

The Chairman of the Steering Committee presented the report of the Steering Committee of the AU/ Inter-African Phytosanitary Council to the Assembly. In his report (see attached report for detail) he pointed out that the Steering Committee held its first meeting in May 2005 in Nairobi, Kenya and its second meeting in March 2006 in Cairo Egypt.

The Steering Committee reported that the following were the resolutions of first meeting :

ISSUES DISCUSSED AND RECOMMENDATIONS DURING THE FIRST STEERING COMMITTEE MEETING The committee discussed the composition of the SC.

 It was observed that in as much as the Regional Economic Communities were to be permanent members of the SC, the absence of representation from the North African Region was of concern and was discussed at length. In this regard it was agreed that the IAPSC works with AFSTA to establish a contact point for this region to be represented on the committee

 The committee was also in agreement with the presence of DREA as another permanent member.

 It was also agreed that other members may be recommended for co-opting to the steering committee as need arises.

The SC discussed the frequency of Meetings and agreed that these be held just before the meetings of the Commission on Phytosanitary Measures (CPM), once every year.

The SC noted that the problem of the language of the documents has always been brought to the attention of the General Assemblies. It was noted that the language barrier could be a handicap to effective communication. It was therefore proposed that the post of a translator be included in the IAPSC organogram. Alternatively, funds could be made available for hiring one on short term basis. A committee of three persons was formed to prepare an appropriate organogram of the IAPSC in line with its new roles and responsibilities. The organogram is attached to this report.

The SC discussed its terms of reference and adopted those contained in article V of the Inter-African Phytosanitary convention.

The REC in attendance at the meetings of the SC gave reports on the various activities that they were implementing. From these reports it was revealed that a number of the RECs were successfully implementing activities related to SPS while others were facing difficulties, particularly with regard to the securing of funds for implementing the activities. The activities report by the RECS included human resource capacitation, institutional capacitation, operational capacitation and coordination and information exchange enhancement. Others were monitoring and control of migratory pests (a regional policy has been drafted.

Other organizations present during the meetings also made presentations on the activities they were carrying out. These included AFSTA and ASARECA. They reported activities related to Information on pests, pest risk analysis, capacity building at entry points and harmonization on seed policies.

The SC discussed the attendance at its meetings. It was resolved that the AU should take financial responsibility for the steering committee members to attend the SC meetings as well as the General Assembly of the. Inter-African Phytosanitary Council.

ISSUES DISCUSSED AND RECOMMENDATIONS DURING THE SECOND STEERING COMMITTEE MEETING

The second meeting of the steering Committee deliberated on the following items

• Report on 1st Sc meeting, Nairobi, Kenya, 2005. • Nomination of African experts to the various committees of the Commission for Phytosanitary Measures (CPM), • Report on the status of IAPSC/IBAR and IAPSC/IITA projects to address WTO-SPS in the continent • To review activities proposed by Inter-African Phytosanitary Council (IAPSC) for the year.

The SC discussed and adopted the report of the first meeting of the SC, held in Nairobi with the following amendments

a. the SC emphasised that the representation of the North African Region was to be accorded to one representative from a private sector organisation and one from the REC dealing with North African Countries (UMA). In this regard a representative from the Egyptian Agricultural Export Council was admitted as a member. Those attending the 2nd steering Committee Meeting were therefore the following :

 COMESA-Chairing

 African Seed Trade Association (AFSTA)-Vice Chair

 IAPSC-Secretary

 The Director- Directorate for Agriculture and Rural Economy (DREA)-Member

 IBAR-Member

 IITA-Member

 Representative from the Egyptian Export Council-Member

 Egyptians from the Ministry of Agriculture and the Ministry of Foreign Agricultural Trade- observers

 El Mansoura University- General Rapporteur

The organo-gram of IAPSC was amended to include the minimum qualification of each of the positions at the IAPSC Office in Yaounde as well as consolidating the post of translator. The revised organogram is attached With regard to translation, the SC recommended that

i. The African Union should consider the long term possibility of employing a full translator

ii. In the meantime documents could be sent to the AU headquarters in Addis Ababa for translation, for as long as this was done at least one month before a meeting.

iii. In addition, the AU headquarters should consider providing the IAPSC with budgetary support to hire freelance translators whenever this was necessary. During its second meeting in March 2006 the following issues were discussed :

 Report on first Standards Committee meeting

 Nomination of African experts to the various committees of the CPM

 Report on the status of IAPSC/ IBAR and IAPSC/ IITA, Biosecurity information systems for Africa projects to address WTO-SPS in the continent

 Report of RECs, private sector and other institutions in the Committee

 Review activities proposed by IAPSC for 2006/2007

The SC discussed the nominations of African representatives to the various committees of the Commission for Phytosanitary Measures (CPM) and recommended as follows ;

b. Since Morocco is a member of the European Plant Protection Organisation (EPPO) the SC did not consider it appropriate for Morocco to represent the African region. In this regard therefore it was recommended that when Morocco's current term ends, other African countries should be nominated to represent the African Region.

c. With regard to Uganda's membership the SC recommended that Uganda should be urged to regularise its accession to the IPPC, failing which it would loose its position on the standards committee in accordance with the IPPC.

d. In the same vein, the SC further urged any other African Member State that have not yet acceded to the IPPC to do so as a matter of urgency.

e. The SC recommended that for all future nominations to any CPM committee the SC of IAPSC must be appropriately informed.

The SC also recommended that as much as possible members of the SC should attend meetings of the CPM. While other members were encouraged to seek support for attending these meetings from their respective organisations, it was proposed that the IAPSC should finance the attendance of the bureau.

The SC applauded and endorsed the proposal for the project to address WTO-SPS in the continent presented by the AU-IBAR/AU-IAPSC.

Similarly the SC applauded and endorsed the concept note developed by AU-IAPSC, IITA and the Norwegian Crop Protection Institute.

The SC also took note of the progress being made in the implementation of the COMESA Agricultural Marketing Promotion and Regional Integration project.

The SC took note with appreciation the efforts being made by IITA in contributing to crop production and food security in Africa, by making available their facilities and expertise.

The SC similarly took note with appreciation the work being carried out by the African Seed Trade Association and their offer to contribute financially and otherwise to the work program of DREA. In this spirit, the SC urged the IAPSC to strive to mobilise resources from within the African region before turning to other development partiners.

The SC expressed deep disappoint with the way the IAPSC Office in Yaounde functioned as manifested in its failure to present a complete and comprehensive activity progress report to the SC for the past year. In this regard the SC directed the Director of IAPSC to redraft the report and present it to the bureau as soon as possible.

However, the SC endorsed the following components of the report

f. The proposal on Biosecurity Frameworks for Africa

g. The training for Phytosanitary Inspectors in Africa.

The SC discussed the Program of work for the IAPSC for the year 2006/2007. As was the case with the progress report, the SC was similarly disappointed with the calibre of most of the programmes proposed and consequently directed that the Director should ensure that the 2006/2007 program is redone in order to appropriately address pertinent phytosanitary issues relevant to the work program and mandate of the IAPSC.

The SC agreed that the next meeting will take place in Yaounde in late February or early March, 2007. Should it be unfeasible to hold the meeting in Yaounde, it was agreed that the meeting would be held in Lusaka back to back with the meeting of the African Seed Trade Association. Should this also fail, the meeting would be held at the AU Headquarters in Addis Ababa.

CONCLUSION

Having held two meetings so far, the SC wishes to reaffirm its commitment to the Maputo Declaration of 2003, from whose spirit the SC derives its mandate. The vision of the SC of the IAPSC is to have an African continent that effectively participates in world trade in agricultural products, having addressed the issues related to phytosanitary measures. The SC is now poised to ensure that the programmes of the IAPSC are effectively delivered and truly serves the aspirations of the people of Africa. We owe it to them to deliver them from hunger and poverty.

The General Assembly considered and discussed this report and finally adopted it following a proposal by South Africa, which was seconded by Uganda.

5. Report by the Director of the IAPSC

The Director IAPSC presented his report. He outlined that the programme of activities was proposed and approved by the budget for the period under review. The programme was divided into seven sub-programmes and consists of the following :

Sub-programme 1 : Harmonization of phytosanitary regulations in Africa

Sub-programme 2 : Regional strategies against the introduction and spread of in sect pests and plant diseases and popularization of reliable and sustainable plant protection techniques

Sub-programme 3 : Information and communication

Sub-programme 4 : IAPSC phytosanitary training programme

Sub-programme 5 : Joint Scientific and technical research projects (JP)

Sub-programme 6 : Conferences/ committees/ seminars/ workshops

Sub-programme 7 : IAPSC (Yaounde) personnel capacity building

The programme also took into account the restructured organizational chart of the office and the implementation of the new common African plant protection strategy proposed by the IAPSC.

The budget for 2004 was tabled to the AU according to these programmes but was not granted. Similar work programmes were proposed for 2005 and 2006 budgets.

The report singled out the lack of financial and human resources as major constraints.

In discussing the Director's report the following regulatory issues for Africa were highlighted :

GMO's, research and regulatory actions required for Africa Import control, registration and application of bio-pesticides

The possibility for an electronic certification system for African countries was proposed, but the meeting felt that African countries were not ready yet.

The plenary discussed the financial and human resource capacity needs and it was suggested that active participation by member countries will contribute to the successful implementation of the IAPSC projects.

Participants also recommended that the IAPSC should maintain a two year periodicity for the Assembly according to availability of budgetary provisions. The IAPSC was urged to strive to implement this recommendation.

6. Introduction to the theme of the 22nd General Assembly- Why plant health and safe trade-

Dr. Olembo gave an expounded and comprehensive outline of the relevant international organizations, their standards and impact on international trade in plants and plant products. It was indicated that there were opportunities for various types of technical assistance available for African countries that can contributed to their participation in international trade. She proposed regional bio-security systems as well as regionalization in enhancing market access to support African regional strategies such as CAADP and NEPAD.

The plenary supported the notion for regionalized bio-security plans and actions.

7. International Agreements and Framework Regulating Trade in Plants

The Coordinator of the International Plant Protection Convention, Mr Ivess, made a presentation in which he explained the role of the IPPC and the responsibilities and benefits of being a member of the IPPC. With the ratification of the 1997 Revised Text of the IPPC in October 2005, all contracting parties became members of the CPM. Those countries that did not ratify the convention would have to submit instruments of acceptance for them to be accepted as members, while those who not would have to remain as observers. This would have excluded such countries from participating in IPPC matters. He indicated that with the meeting of the CPM in April 2006, the plenary will theoretically need to establish or re-establish all structures within the CPM. However, no additional responsibilities to members are envisaged.

8. IPPC FAO Crop Protection Office, Ghana - Hannah Clarendon She reported that IPPC/FAO Supports IAPSC in Capacity building and referred to the on-going TCPs on Phytosanitary Capacity Evaluation. She stressed the need for preparedness of the NPPOs in the region to have a common position for voting during CPM meetings. She also urged IAPSC Member States to take advantage and learn from existing centers of excellence such as KEPHIS. She suggested that IAPSC should design their work programme and set priorities which are compliant with IPPC as well as take programmes of RECs in regard to SPS, food safety, bio-safety issues. They should enhance their management capacity - to integrate and effectively respond to the needs of Member States.

In discussing Clarendon's submission, IAPSC thanked IPPC for the TCP which has assisted Member States in their reporting obligations under the IPPC.

Congo Delegate wanted to know the procedures to obtain a TCP e.g. for setting laboratories to analyze pesticide residue levels, He further wished to know the status of the request they submitted for revision of phytosanitary legislation of his country.

In response the presenter indicated that request of an NPPO is what triggers the support. Hence a country must make a request specific through their Ministry of Agriculture. Benin delegate indicated concerns as to the status of the equipment to be supplied to the UEMOA project for training of inspectors.

In response the presenter stated that, there is an on going review for UEMOA and a statement would be given.

Dr Makambila observed that the presentation seems to give new notions in the concept for TCPs that an NPPO may need to consider. What contribution can FAO make to teaching structure to incorporate some of these new notions ? IPPC/FAO can participate in developing modules in crop protection which can be used in teaching in institutions of higher learning.

In contribution, Dr Sarah Olembo reported that IAPSC had sent out questionnaires to institutions of higher learning and research on how they can contribute to IPPC. Algerian delegate noted that IAPSC should be able to identify priorities for donor support. Article 9 of the revised text of IPPC gives RPPOs the mandate to contribute to the work program of the IPPC. As the RPPO, IAPSC is the only organization that can address issues on behalf of African nations. However, we must first identify our weaknesses as states then list the relevant experts to participate in the phytosanitary standard setting process.

Richard Ivess (IPPC) was impressed by the report of the steering committee because it has identified priorities for the African region. Since African has 53 member states, it has the potential to have a strong voice in CPM meetings.

However, all these countries should be contracting parties in order to benefit from attending the annual CPM meetings to address the needs of the region adequately. Dr. Ivess further made reference to the Technical Consultation (TC) meetings among the regional plant protection organizations. He indicated that the TC meeting scheduled for August this year will essentially take stock on the RPPOs and give an opportunity for comparing experiences and assessing how advanced RPPOs can assist the RPPOs of developing countries. He was looking forward to the presentation on Pest Free Areas (PFAs) as this can stimulate ideas on how research and education could contribute to the development of phytosanitary measures. He reported that IPPC was considering issues of biosecurity to be included in the curriculum of institutions of higher learning. He mentioned further that the General Assembly of the IAPSC is the appropriate forum to nominate African representatives in various committees. He proposed that in future, IPPC should be given adequate notice of the IAPSC General Assembly to facilitate full participation.

IAPSC encouraged the participation of many African countries in the CPM meeting.

Ron Sequiera (USDA-APHIS) expressed his concerns that African countries opinions are not being properly articulated in the CPM meetings because of inadequate preparedness prior to the meetings. He therefore pledged USDA-APHIS funding for annual regional consultative meetings on draft standards for the next five years.

Richard Ivess (IPPC) commended USDA position on funding the regional consultative meetings of African NPPOs and pointed out that this provided an excellent opportunity for the African region to participate in standard setting activities. Seychelles delegate presented a report on the phytosanitary activities and constraints in implementing some of the ISPMs in his country.

9. COMESA SPS Programme - Bruce Mukanda

COMESA presented an overview of the process of harmonization of SPS measures for the region and emphasized that the low levels of intra & extra COMESA agricultural trade were attributed to inadequate flow of agricultural marketing information and inadequately harmonised SPS measures. The inadequacy in harmonizing SPS measures was in turn attributed to insufficient human resources, weak institutional capacities, insufficient dialogue pertaining to SPS measures among member States and inadequate participation of member States in international SPS matters. The presentation highlighted various activities which were being implemented in order to address these issues.

In discussing the presentation by COMESA, the IAPSC Secretariat urged COMESA to make an inventory of quarantine pests, diagnostic facilities and emergency preparedness in the COMESA region to prevent the spread of pests in traded commodities.

COMESA responded that although it was a free trade area, it recognized the phytosanitary concerns of member States and hence national pest lists will be addressed through discussion forums, training sessions and assessment of laboratory capacities.

The FAO/IPPC expressed concern that COMESA may be attempting to formulate new standards in the region and risked duplicating international standards. COMESA clarified that it was not formulating new standards but was using international standards as benchmarks, except in cases where there were no standards in place.

10. Control of Ceratitis capitata in Egypt Dr Abdel-Fattah G. Hashem

Outlined the various methods of eradicating fruitfly being implemented in Egypt including legislative, agricultural, mechanical, natural, and chemical and biological controls. The Ugandan delegate enquired if there were any results instead of just procedures from efforts to control Ceratitis capitata and creation of pest free areas. He further asked whether there were any control efforts being made against Bactrocera zonata and B. invadens which are quarantine pests in neighbouring countries.

Algeria enquired about the number matings for female fruitflies to ensure success of Sterile Insect Technique (SIT) control.

In response Dr Abdel-Fattah clarified that a female can mate two to three times. However, there was an observation that a female fruitfly will not accept any male when the spermatheca is full.

11. Pest Free Areas of Ralstonia solancearum in Egypt - Ali Suleiman

Outlined the procedures followed in designating Ralstonia Pest Free Areas and monitoring the maintenance of the pest free area status.

In the discussion that followed, members wanted to know if there were any potato cultivars available in Egypt which are resistant to Ralstonia/ In response, it was reported that there were no cultivars resistant to Ralstonia available in Egypt. South Africa Egypt may consider establishing Pest Free places of production instead of Pest Free Areas because the former are easier to manage and maintain since they cover smaller geographical areas.

He reported that maintenance of pest free areas of Ralstonia in Egypt was feasible especially with assistance from EU. Richard Ivess (IPPC) - reported that WTO and IPPC recognize the need for the regionalization of pest free areas. A working group has drafted the standards for international recognition of pest free areas which will be discussed in May 2006. Individual contracting parties can adopt them bilaterally.

12. Optimizing plant disease defense for the production of high quality seed -Dr El. Wakil

He presented a report of effect of GAWDA on various crops including wheat, pea nuts, green peas and potatoes. He reported that GAWDA enhances systemic acquired resistance (SAR). He explained that GAWDA is a combination of five anti-oxidants.

The IAPSC sought clarification on the nature of anti-oxidants in GAWDA.

In response, Prof El Wakil mentioned that there are a number of anti-oxidants including poly phenols, carotenes etc that can con tribute to plant defense. However he could not reveal the formulation of GAWDA since this is confidential business information (CBI). He emphasized that the use of GAWDA was safe because the oxidation process releases energy which protects the plant cell from any diseases. The Congo delegate wanted to know the diseases of potatoes which can be controlled using GAWDA

In response, Prof El Wakil indicated that the diseases controlled by GAWDA included late and ealy blight and Brown rot.

Dr Makambila - observed that in central Africa that the main potato problems were the mildew, Ralstonia, and viruses. He inquired whether GAWDA can be used to control virus diseases.

Prof El Wakil stated that he was not sure of the effect of GAWDA on viral diseases of Potatoes.

13. Industry Perspective : African Seed trade Association - Obongo Nyachae

He gave a background of AFSTA which has sixty members and its role in seed trade in Africa. He also outlined the challenges AFSTA in indicating that AFSTA can assist in supporting programs in training, certification, and biotechnology and has even has capacity to hire litigation services for drafting seed laws. AFSTA can assist countries to harmonize legislations at regional or sub-regional level. He further urged countries to set up laboratories and research centre for biotechnology and pursue accreditation for such laboratories. Mr. Nyachae encouraged NPPOs to put in place flexible laws such as the case of Rwanda which has a three page seed law developed from laws of NPPOs of the region instead it has concentrated in the development of regulations which are easier to change. AU Secretariat reported that the AU policy making organ had recommended the setting up of a committee to make consultations with states and stakeholders on seed imports to come up with a common position. He recommended that both public and private sectors should be involved in the development of plant variety protection laws and gave an example of Kenya, Tanzania, and South Africa which have already prepared these laws.

14. Phytosanitary regulations and trade responses for African agricultural products - Analysis of major constraints Dr Nkouka

He gave an overview of emerging trends in areas of phytosanitary interest as well as aspects of food quality and safety and constraints due to new regulations in international trade. These new rules require compliance with a variety of measures which are requisite for accessing international markets. The measures include Good Agricultural Practices (GAP), Hazard Analysis Critical Control Point (HACCP), EUREPGAP, traceability, and mycotoxins as important contaminants, etc. IAPSC Secretariat commended the efforts of Dr Nkouka for presenting a paper addressing gaps in many constraints. Congo delegate expressed concern on the need to sensitize stakeholders on the effects of mycotoxins on the safety of some foodstuffs. The Nigerian delegate observed that the mycotoxin is a problem in many countries, especially in curcubits, peanuts, and dry fruits and therefore needs a common solution.

15. Seed and Germplasm health and certification programs for plant health - Dr Maria Ayodele & Stanford Blade They highlighted new diagnostic tools and techniques that have improved the ability to detect and identify plant pathogens rapidly. However, although the protocols are expensive, they are used for the production of clean and healthy germplasm material for safe international distribution. The Secretariat of the IAPSC commended IITA for producing safe planting material as a sure way of producing healthy and safe plants. However, there is need for infrastructure and adequate human resources. Also there was a need to address preservation methods of in vitro plants. In response, the presenter stated that conservation was not an issue in the presentation. The recommended method for the transfer of vegetative propagating material as recommended by IPBGR and which has never been reviewed is in tissue culture form. This method had resulted to losses in transit and field establishment. With theoutlinedtechniques,IITAhavebeenabletosafelyexchangeinternationallyplant propagativematerial withminimumlosses. Dr Makambila wondered whetherthere is any collaborative work to control root rots such as Armillaria root rot.

In response the presenters informed him that there are many students and scientists based at IITA who are working on different pathogens causing rots on cassava. IITA is ready to collaborate in research but interested scientists must identify specific problem areas then formally seek collaboration

16. Day 3 Panel Discussions-

Access to markets and capacity building

This day was devoted to discussions on various phytosanitary issues limiting Africa's participation in international markets. A keynote address was given by Dr. Ron Sequeira, Director for African SPS initiatives in the office of USDA-APHIS-TST.

Dr. Sequeira started by thanking the IAPSC for giving him the opportunity to address the assembly. In his address he highlighted the following points : That the application of SPS requirements is vital to all consumers, they are important for the protection of agriculture and for the conservation of ecosystems and the natural environment.

That under the WTO members have the rights to set their own SPS measures as long as they have evidence why such measures should be higher that those set by the standards setting bodies, however the USA measures can make it hard for other countries to export to the USA.

Under the AGOA Dr. Sequeira outlined that this was a preferential commercial agreement for African countries to promote products that met specific criteria. AGOA is an important tool to alleviate poverty, boost economic growth and development.

For horticultural products, USDA and USAID have worked a special program to evaluate horticultural produce for the USA markets. This program which includes an examination of the phytosanitary risks associated with specific products will provide plans to monitor and control pests conduct inspection and risk assessments to enhance plant health programs for production and familiariliarization of African players with commercial requirements of the US market as well as enhance participation in world markets for horticultural produce. This is because a strong plant health protection system is vital not just to trade, but to safeguarding agricultural productivity and the environment.

In devising the best mechanism to strengthen the African SPS structure for export, Dr. Sequeira informed the assembly that there are programs in place for the American scientists from APHIS to work together with African countries to strengthen African regional phytosanitary capacity. This involves the stationing of USDA-APHIS advisors throughout African regions to work on risk analysis. Training was intended to enhance capacities in NPPos to implement IPPC, and WTO-SPS frameworks, and to facilitate public and private sector partnerships. Further, that USDA-APHIS will support infrastructure development with the involvement of producers, traders and governments. Key to the above,

 The USDA-APHIS wishes to establish functional leadership that will be able to deal with international trade issues

 Establish regional centers of excellence

 Assist in the harmonization of SPS rules and legislation

 Promote public and private sector partnerships

 Build pest and mitigation database as similar to the one built for

 Senegal

 Build a Provisional Vision and Strategy (PSV) for Africa

Following this comprehensive paper that addressed not only market access, but also capacity building 2 panel discussions were formed. The first panel addressed issues in market access. Panelists for this topic involved the Regional Economic Communities (RECs), the private sector (African Seed Trade Association and the Egyptian Export Council) as well as IITA, The second panel addressed topics in capacity building. The panelists included FAO, CABI and NPPOs.

From the panel discussions, recommendations that emerged formed the basis of discussion in commissions. Nominal group technique was used to obtain consensus on the solutions and actions to address the recommendations.

Recommendations were made for Africa to establish programs for

 Centers of phytosanitary Excellency (COPES)

 Market Access, public and private partnerships

 Leadership and funding support to mitigating programs

 Legislation, surveillance and diagnostic frameworks.

17. Results of the Nominal group technique providing solutions and action plans to implement the recommendations were presented in the Plenary and adopted by the Assembly. They were as follows :

Establishment of Centers of Phytosanitary Excellency (COPES)

 The centers should strive for accreditation

 They should be provided with an electronic bio-security information system

 Must use the science of PRAs in decision making

 Mobilize resources for the operation of such a center

 Offer training of trainers in plant protection

Market Access, public and private partnerships  Establish coordination of such partnerships for strengthening the infrastructure of NPPOs and the RPPO

 Institutionalize training on GAP, HACCP and Risk Analysis

 Encourage the private industry to pay for research

Leadership and funding support to mitigating programs

 Such leadership should demonstrate responsibility and transparency

 Should demonstrate leadership in training and technical competence

Legislation, surveillance and diagnostic frameworks Legislation

 Review with stakeholder participation

 Harmonize with international norms

 Sensitize politicians on compliance and consequences of failure to comply

 Empower regulators to enforce

 Simplify the laws to be flexible

Surveillance

 Include farmers in training and surveillance

 Develop Risk Analysis and use this tools to sensitize authorities on implications of costs/benefits

 Governments should be encouraged to put surveillance systems in place

 Develop pest lists

Diagnostic capabilities

 Encourage regional collaboration to establish reference laboratories

 Develop and harmonize standards on certification and diagnostics

 Develop simple identification charts and extension materials

In the evening and as part of closing ceremonies a beautiful dinner was offered by His Excellency H. E Mr. Amin Abaza, Minister of Agriculture and Land Reclamation. The dinner was garnished with Egyptian evening cultural show at the Nile crystal on the Nile River.

18. Fourth day

Scientific Excursion A visit was arranged of a tour of Sokhna Port, where a luncheon was served, courtesy, the Director of Plant Quarantine services, of the Ministry of Agriculture and Land Reclamation-Dr. Serfat El Haddad.

Closing program.

The closing ceremony was pre-sided by the Director of the Directorate of Rural Economy and Agriculture, (DREA) Dr. A. Babagana who represented the Commissioner. Also on the podium were the Director of Plant Quarantine of the Ministry of Agriculture and Land Reclamation- ; Dr. Serfat El Haddad and the Director, of the Egyptian Ministry of International Agricultural Trade Mr. Abdalla Shaffi. In their presence, the report of the Assembly was read, and adopted with amendments. Following the adoption, the Director of DREA thanked the Egyptian Government for hosting the Assembly. In his remarks, he took note of the excellent facilities and hospitality placed at the disposal of the participants. He thanked USAID-APHIS, FAO, IITA, AFSTA the RECs, the Member States and the President of the University of El Mansoura for their contributions in the success of the Assembly. The Egyptian authorities also thanked the African Union for selecting Egypt to host the Assembly ; they thanked the interpreters, the Secretariat of the IAPSC and all the speakers and rapporteurs. He wished the participants journey mercies as they returned to their countries.

Following this short ceremony, members were asked to choose the venue for the 23rd Assembly. Cape Verde and Uganda were possible candidates. The IAPSC was requested to dialogue with these two countries and communicate to the Member States which country will host the 3rd Assembly in 2008. At this juncture, the Director DREA invited the Director of IAPSC to deliver his closing remarks. The Director thanked the host country Egypt and he remarked on the steering committee report explaining that given the required budgetary provisions, he will send his activity Report to the Commissioner, and thereafter, to the Bureau of the Steering Committee as requested.

There being no other business, the meeting was closed by the African Union Director for Rural economy and Agriculture at 6.30 pm.

22ST GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE INTER-AFRICAN PHYTOSANITARY COUNCIL THEME-PLANT HEALTH and SAFE TRADE CAIRO, EGYPT 19-23 MARCH 2006- Full report and the list of participants can be read by cliking on the PDF file below

Full 22nd GA Report and participant list (PDF, 449.7 ko)

Web page edited by B. Bouato, Webmaster, IAPSC