Having Pleasure on the Plate but Safety in the Mind
by Kimera Henry Richard, Chief Executive - CONSENT
Presented at
An International Conference for Consumer organizations on
Food Safety
on June 9 2005 at WHO Headquarters in Geneva, Switzerland
Under the theme
Crafting a Public Health Agenda for a Modern Food Safety Systems
Organized by
WHO, FAO and SFI – CSPI
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 Introduction and Status quo
 Challenges
 Interventions, Action & Way forward
 Conclusions
Introduction and Status quo
Uganda in Brief
Where on earth is Uganda?
Introduction and Status quo contd…
Uganda in Brief
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Vital National Information and Statistics on Uganda
POLITICS & GEOGRAPHY
Geographical location: East Africa, astride the Equator, land locked.
Geographical neighbors: Kenya, Tanzania, Sudan, DR Congo, Rwanda
Administrative system, structure: Decentralized system with central government retaining role of policymaking,
supervision and admin. Units - 56 districts
Area: 241.038 sq km (93.072 sq miles)
Life expectancy: 45 years (men), 47 years (women) – UN
Population distribution: 82% rural, 18% urban
System of government: ‘No party’ system but in transiting to multiparty system
Introduction and Status quo contd…
Uganda in Brief
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SOCIAL & HISTORICAL POINTERS
Historical background: Former British protectorate, stable before independence but chaotic afterwards (turmoil, unrest,
economic decline)
Major languages: English (official), Kiswahili, Ganda
Major religions: Christians, Muslims
Number of phone lines: 1.040.127 mobile, 71.056 fixed (4.2% penetration) – UCC, Nov. 2004
Access to electricity: 5% of population (250,000 connections - ERA)
Access to clean water: 60% (national), 55% rural – 2004 (DWD)
Literacy rate: 69.9%
Adult HIV prevalence: 7% (MoH, 2005)
No of radio sets (per 1000pple): 130 (unicef, 2002)
No of television sets (per 1000pple): 16 (unicef, 2002)
Prevalence of poverty: 38% (MoFPED, 2004)
Available capacity: 315mw (April 2005- ERA)
Population / population density: 26.7 million / 126 persons per Km2 (UN, 2004)
Population growth / fertility rate: 3.4% PA / 6.8 children per woman
Introduction and Status quo contd…
Uganda in Brief
ECONOMICS & TRADE
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Main exports: Coffee, Fish and fish products, tea, tobacco, cotton, maize (corn), beans (MoFPED)
Monetary unit: Uganda shilling
Exchange rate: $1=sh1,770; є1=2,200; £1=3,200
GDP per Capita: US $240 (World Bank, 2003)
Integration, trade arrangement: Member of EAC, COMESA, WTO, OIC
Major taxes: Income tax (including corporate tax), withholding tax and rental income tax; value
added tax (VAT); excise duty on certain products and sales tax. Imported goods attract import duty
and import commission. (Source: MoFPED)
 Total external debt stock: US$ 4.3billion [10% GDP] (2003/04 – MoFPED)
 Inflation: 7.0% (March 2004 – MoFPED)
 Tax revenue: 12% of GDP (MoFPED)
Introduction and Status quo contd…
Uganda & CONSENT in Brief
CONSENT in brief
 Consumer Education Trust (CONSENT) is a civil society organization that strives for a socially informed, equitable and just
society through empowerment of consumers, promotion of ethical practices among business and engagement of policymakers to
enact pro-people policies for present and future generations.
 CONSENT designs and implements programs and activities through stakeholder/public awareness; capacity enhancement;
constructive dialogue; policy research and advocacy; and advisory services on socio-economic issues.
Objectives
 To promote consumer education at all levels of society;
 To promote sustainable dialogue among stakeholders for the benefit of consumers;
 To carry out research and develop resources for advocacy, awareness and training programs accessible to stakeholders;
 To develop a resource center to facilitate different stakeholders.
 To establish links and networks with likeminded organizations, institutions and individuals in promotion of a fairer marketplace.
Introduction and Status quo contd…
Uganda & CONSENT in Brief
Programs
 Consumer Education: awareness, capacity enhancement and access to justice;
 Food and Agriculture: awareness, capacity enhancement, food safety and security, quality surveillance, biotechnology and biosafety;
 Trade and Economics: socio-economic literacy, capacity enhancement, advocacy for fair trade, access to justice, sustainable
development and poverty reduction;
 Health and Environment: access, quality of service, safety, hygiene, sustainable and responsible consumption, biotechnology and
bio-safety,;
 Utilities and Social Services: access and quality of service.
CONSENT Team
 The implementing team at CONSENT is of dynamic, qualified, dedicated, experienced and technical calibre. The team has working
experience in public and private sector environment in research, policy formulation and implementation as well as harmonization
of policies, legal and regulatory frameworks at national, regional and international levels.
Status quo of the Food Safety System in Uganda
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Food is essential for the very existence and sustenance of life of human kind.
Therefore, it follows that its existence, in terms of quantity and quality, as well as
safety and security are accorded the importance they deserve under any process
- socio–economic; political, etc.
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Food-related issues and risks including disease infections and infestations as well as
chemical and toxin contamination should be accorded due priority and
addressed at all societal levels at national, regional and international levels. With
increasing globalization and cooperation among nations, problems and dangers
could easily and quickly spread within nations and across nations faster than ever
before. The situation is worse in developing countries like Uganda where borders
are highly porous and the marketplace is ill-policed due to institutional and policy
weaknesses and gaps.
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The high prevalence of food-related and food borne diseases requires detailed
regulation to guide consumers especially the most vulnerable and disadvantaged
in society including infants, children, the poor, and the physically/mentally
handicapped.
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Food-related diseases and hazards are recognized to be a significant public
health problem in Uganda, although there is insufficient data to enable accurate
quantification of morbidity and mortality associated with the same.
Status quo contd..
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Much of the burden of illness results from basic sanitation failures that occur during
food production, processing, retailing and handling in the home.
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Basic food hygiene is made difficult by the lack of necessary sanitation
infrastructure in many parts of the country and segments of the food system.
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It’s appreciated that with perfect markets; there would be no need to regulate for
safety. Consumers with perfect knowledge about the safety of the products on
offer would decide for themselves what suited their needs best and their decisions,
by themselves, would be sufficient to ensure that unsafe products would get no
sales and would find no place in the market.
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However the reality and practical outcome on the Ugandan market is different
thus requires effective interventions through appropriate policies legal and
institutional frameworks.
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It is appreciated that there is nothing like zero risk and that perfect safety is
impossible.
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It is noted that many products on sale every day carry considerable risks. Justifying
the need to protect consumers from dangers that they cannot reasonably foresee
or guard themselves against.
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It is appreciated that, it is difficult for consumers to protect themselves against risks
without guidance thus the SFI project and other initiatives are welcome but should
be practical and result- oriented to answer challenges in the arena.
Status quo contd…
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The risks arising from improper hygiene practices in the manufacturing, distribution
and handling of food products at home are clearly considerable. This calls for
modern policy frameworks and enforcement regimes to impose a duty on all
involved in the production, processing and sale of food products to sell to
consumers only products that are safe and wholesome.
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In reality, implementation has proved impossible due to a number of facts that are
political, economic, social, spiritual and cultural. Existing legal and regulatory
frameworks in Uganda can protect and improve food safety but the ability to
implement is lacking and some of the regimes are obsolete.
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In the existing laws, surveillance and recall regimes exist but are not applied. For
example, the Public Health Act empowers local governments to inspect eating
houses before licensing. However, this is not happening. Why? It’s due to
incoherence in policy, coupled with financial constraints at local government
level.
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Change of policy that came with wide-ranging reforms since the late 1980s to the
present day has resulted in down-sizing of the civil service and deregulation.
Institutions performing the role of quality assurance and creating safety nets were
greatly affected by the developments. For instance, the Uganda National Bureau
of Standards as well as other institutions at national and local authorities (district)
levels are understaffed and under-resourced.
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Consumer organizations and other stakeholders are involved but the effective
participation is limited to a few activities because do not have statutory powers to
apprehend and litigate all through the legal system.
Status quo contd…
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As key stakeholders, Consumer organizations (COs) play a role with regard to any
societal concerns and interests by providing input to policy, legal, regulatory and
institutional frameworks, protocols, agreements, negotiations and implementation
processes and agendas like food safety and control system among others.
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COs are also recognized and appreciated as entities that act on behalf of the
voiceless, vulnerable and resource poor communities. As the eyes, ears and
voices of the communities they also compliment the mainstream actors government. Their involvement is paramount in attaining effective food control
systems for a healthy nation.
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CONSENT’s campaign in food safety underlines the responsibility and importance
of having safe and hygienic food right from the farm, through the market to our
plates. It is the organisation’s position that it’s everyone’s responsibility as we are all
consumers.
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We sum up the campaign in the slogan: Consumers should have pleasure on the
plate and safety in mind at all times. In essence, consumers / stakeholders should
always think beyond the food on the plate and question its safety and quality.
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They should also participate in food-related issues at household and all societal
levels (village, sub-county, district, national and international) to enhance food
safety control systems.
Challenges
Challenges to Food Safety …
 With recognition of high prevalence of food-related disease and other
risks, there is urgent need for information, education, training and
empowerment of all stakeholders on the importance of food-safety and
hygiene.
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Urgency and reality are far apart due to a number of challenges right
from farm/food production, processing, retailing and handling in the
home.
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High poverty levels lead to what locally is referred to as the ‘survival
syndrome’ at all levels. Why? Several members of the executive,
judiciary, legislator, regulators, local government and business, etc are
in business. The question then stands: Who is regulating, monitoring and
evaluating whom?
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Consumers are left to the mercy of God or to their own mercy for those
who don’t believe in the supreme deity. Under the status quo, the
resource-poor institutions can only play their role to a limited extent.
Challenges
Other challenges include:
• Limited human and financial resources to effectively implement
food safety activities.
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• Limited public awareness and high consumer ignorance
• Weak policy, legal and institutional framework to address issues
• Incoherence of existing policies and legal frameworks
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• Lack of documented data on the prevalence of food borne
diseases
• Inadequate infrastructure to test, inspect, store and generally
handle food products
• Lack of explicit framework for consumer and consumer
organization involvement
Inventions, Action & Way forward
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The recognized high prevalence of food-related diseases needs
interventions right from changing retrogressive mindsets/attitudes
through to changes of policy and regulatory frameworks. This requires
huge investments in information, education, communication and
training.
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Guideline 7 as well as its components is good only if commitments
are turned into action because information, education, communication
and training, if effectively implemented can bear sustainable and longlasting results.
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Consumer awareness and information are a prerequisite to any
sustainable development process in any given setting. In broad terms,
this involves initiatives that provide information and foster awareness of
the beneficiaries as end-users to enable them make informed decisions
and choices and also provide feedback that can fact in, to
operationalize the alert systems and emergences on a broad spectrum.
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Stimulating consumer curiosity, followed by questioning and
reporting is vital as it feeds into safety monitoring mechanisms and
facilitates in designing effective interventions with regard to foodrelated illness. Why? Consumers are a vital factor in the prevalence and
stoppage of food risks.
Inventions, Action & Way forward contd…
Consumer awareness and access to information about
consumables is a right, in fact a human right, synonymous with the need
to promote socio-economic harmony and prosperity at all societal
levels through facilitating consumers’ understanding and response so as
to enable people from all walks of life to live safely and responsibly.
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One of foundations or strong pillars for addressing the risk of foodrelated diseases is public/stakeholder/consumer awareness and
involvement. This is an effective tool that should be applied for the
operationalization of laws and regulations to sustain food-safety
activities and programs.
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Complimentary efforts require a multi-sectoral approach to
address the documented and undocumented incidences of food
borne diseases through public private partnerships to hold the bull of
challenges by the horns.
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Consumer organizations promote rights and responsibilities of
consumers through advocating for the establishment of legislation,
institutions and information that improve quality of life and empower
people to make changes in the quality of their lives.
Inventions, Action & Way forward contd…
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Consumer organizations campaign to ensure availability of good quality and
safe food that is accessible and affordable for consumers through an enabling
environment through advocating for the right policies, regulatory and institutional
framework.
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In order for government, local authorities and the private sector to realize
food safety, they should apply result-oriented approaches at all stages to benefit
consumers using the following principles:
 Involving stakeholders in decision-making
 Increase investment in infrastructure and institutions
 Applying simple participatory methods as much as possible and
 Using existing expertise and infrastructure effectively. We should not always
re-invent the wheel – let’s as much as possible evaluate and build on the
existing resources.
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Promote consumer awareness at all societal levels through involving all
stakeholders while stressing rights, responsibilities, DOs and DONTs in food safety.
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Immediate review and enactment of a modern food safety law and
regulations
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Immediate operationalization of stakeholder awareness initiatives of the
CODEX Guidelines on Street vended foods in Africa to promote food hygiene.
Inventions, Action & Way forward contd…
Carryout training on food safety systems at all levels in the informal
and formal sectors. It’s a fact that the informal sector is the biggest
provider of food in both urban and rural setups.
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Carryout evidence-based research on prevalence of food-related
diseases and share results to input interventions, frameworks reviews,
awareness and justification for governments to investment more in food
safety.
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Generate and disseminate Information, Education and
Communication (IEC) materials that are accurate and relevant on food
safety to foster consumer awareness. They should be: simple, clear, userfriendly and meet the aims of awareness, flexibility, compatible with
other documents and easy to translate.
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Empower stakeholders to effectively engage in policy, legal and
regulation formulation and implementation. Advocate for pro-poor
policy frameworks to promote consumer welfare and ensure high
standards of safety.
Inventions, Action & Way forward contd…
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Promote transparent and accountability practices as basic
precepts in the food industry to ensure consumer safety, especially the
disadvantaged and resource poor.
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Networking with different stakeholders in the food industry to
enhance consumer safety, operational capacity, tapping expertise and
cost effectiveness in implementing food related issues through
designing interactive/participatory food safety events that bring
together like-minded or interested parties.
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As matter of principle, Public-Private Partnerships should be
enhanced to effectively address the challenges in food control systems.
This should be in the areas of:
Consumer awareness on food handling chain
Policy Advocacy
Research for feedback and data collection
Capacity enhancement in institutional, human and financial resources for
effective implementation, participation and responses.
 Information dissemination and networking.
 Monitoring and Surveillance: Work with other stakeholders in conducting
monitoring and market surveillance exercise on the food industry for
rapid/effective response on concerns.
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Conclusion…
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In icing the cake, to ensure an effective food control system and
sustainable development, the following are recommended:
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Place food safety on the political agenda – prioritize food matters
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Build capacity of (street) food vendors to promote food hygiene
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Observation of food control and safety at all levels: farmers, consumers,
businesses etc.
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Intensify public awareness on food-borne diseases
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Develop clear institutional framework on food safety
Immediate enactment of food safety laws and regulations and
implement control regimes. It is imperative to adopt the CODEX Street
Food Vending Guidelines given the importance of street food segment
in developing countries (Uganda).
Conclusion
 Quality standards of food products should be strictly
observed and cross-referenced at both local and
international levels.
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 Lastly, as internationally, economies become increasingly
more interdependent, it is imperative that consumers in
one country are given accurate and clear information
about the compliance of imported goods with standards
set in their country of origin.
… it’s the right and responsibility of every consumer to
participate ...
Thanks You for Listening to Me