G/SPS/GEN/1917  
 
16 June 2021 
(21-4930) Page: 1/3 
Committee on Sanitary and Phytosanitary Measures  Original: English  
 
ECOWAS IMPLEMENTED SANITARY AND PHYTOSANITARY ACTIVITIES  
DURING THE PERIOD OF MARCH - JUNE  2021 
COMMUNICATION FROM ECOWAS -USAID SENIOR SANITARY  
AND PHYTOSANITARY ( SPS) STANDARDS ADVISOR  
The following communication, received on  14 June 2021, is being circulated at the request of  
the Economic Community of West African States  (ECOWAS).  
 
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1  INTRODUCTION  
The USAID/West Africa Regional Mission, USDA , Food and Agriculture Organization Subregional 
Office for West Africa ( FAOSFW ) and Food and Agriculture Organization Resilience Office for 
West Africa and the Sahel ( FAOREOWA ) work to support the  Economic Community of West African 
States (ECOWAS) to advance their vision to create an economic union and common market. In line 
with this  objective , ECOWAS is implementing many agreements designed to support the free 
movement of goods and people throughout the region. Since 2017, SPS -related actions have been 
implemented.  
In view of improving and strengthening SPS activities in the ECOWAS region , the following 
activities were implemented during the period of March - June 2021 . It is to note that since 
March  2020, the COVID -19 pandemic that is still with us, has impacted the smooth implementation 
of SPS -related activities at national and regional levels. As such, most planned SPS -related activities 
were postponed till further notice. However, certain activities were implemented , most of them in a 
virtual mode.  
2  PLANT HEALTH AND PLANT PROTECTION  
2.1  Planning the continuation of training workshop on the "Use of the Harmonized 
Phytosanitary Inspection and Decision -Making Guide"  
Following several coordination meetings, the plan has now been approved for the continuation 
of the training workshop on " The Use of the Harmonized Phytosan itary Inspection and 
Decision -Making Guide ". This  is an effort of USDA -FAS dedicated to support West Africa NPPOs 
Taskforce to disseminate the harmonized Guide in order to promote best practices in the conduct of 
plant quarantine operations in the sub -region. 
It is important to recall the program aims:  
− to train in the pilot countries , including Benin and Nigeria , plant quarantine inspectors on a 
better understanding for further use of the Guide;  
− simulation exercises with practical demonstrations of phytosan itary inspection including pest 
detection and identification at the laboratory;  
− to test the applicability of the Guide.  
Training will be conducted in Senegal, The Gambia, and Cabo Verde on 10-12 August, 
25-27 August and September 2021, respectively. It is projected to train 15 inspectors per country. 
This initiative is in line with ECOWAS priorities and the implementation of the SPS framework to help G/SPS/GEN/1917  
 
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  West Africa n countries' plant quarantine systems meet international standards and to promote safe 
trade.  
2.2  Capacity building of ECOWAS in the prevention, surveillance and control of the desert 
locust as well as the analysis of its impact on food and nutrition security in the Sahel in 
the context of COVID -19 
A comprehensive regional programme on prevention, surveil lance and control of the desert 
locust as well as the analysis of its impact on food and nutrition security in the Sahel  in the context 
of COVID -19 was developed and is being supported by FAO through a technical cooperation 
programme TCP/SFW/3801. The coun tries involved are the nine member countries of the CILSS and 
ECOWAS including Burkina Faso , Cameroon , Chad, The Gambia, Mali, Mauritania, Niger, Nigeria and  
Senegal . The impact of this project is to strengthen the operational and institutional capacity of 
ECOWAS in the preparation, prevention and control of the desert locust as well as the management 
of its impacts on food and nutrition security. In turn, supported countries are able to cope with and 
better manage the locust invasi on and measure its impact on food and nutrition security. This  project 
will be implemented from July 2020  - December 2021.  
2.3  Participation in the inaugura tion of the  Central and West African Virus Epidemiology 
Centre (WAVE) and high -level policy  and technica l dialogue on cassava viral diseases, 
27-28 May 2021, Abidjan, C ôte d'Ivoire  
We participated in the inaugura tion of the WAVE/CORAF regional centre  and high -level policy 
and technical dialogue on cassava viral diseases held on 27 -28 May 2021 in Abidjan, C ôte d'Ivoire. 
The infrastructure and laboratory facility were opened to the public. Also, the high -level policy and 
technical dialogue led to the development of a road map of actions to be implemented during the 
period of 2021 -2025. The WAVE/CORAF project is  implemented in 10  countries of Central and 
West Africa. The delegat ion of ECOWAS comprises of the Commissioner of Agriculture, Environment 
and Water Resources, Senior SPS Standards Advisor, Senior Surveillance , and  Lead of SyRIMAO 
project.  
2.4  Organization of  IICA and ECOWAS coordination meeting for SPS Declaration for the 
Twelfth WTO Ministerial Conference  
In collaboration with the  United States  and the Inter -American Institute for Cooperation on 
Agriculture  (IICA) , a virtual coordination meeting was organize d on 20 May 2021. The meeting aimed 
at seeking more co -sponsors for the SPS Declaration for the Twelfth WTO Ministerial Conference 
contained in WTO document  G/SPS/GEN/1758/Rev .5 and action plan. During the coordination 
meeting the 15 -ECOWAS member States expressed support/ with to co-sponsor the SPS Declaration. 
An official message that serves as a notification was sent to the WTO SPS Secretariat for 
consideration with Cc to all ECOWAS countries ' Geneva -based  missions.  
2.5  Regional training on the use of drones in desert locust control  
The FAO Commission for Controlling the Desert Locust in the Western Regional (CLCPRO) 
attaches a particular attention to the introduction of innovativ e solutions aimed at further 
strengthening the effectiveness of desert locust control but above all at strengthening the 
operational capacities of the Western Region Intervention Force (FIRO). Thus, CLCPRO in 
collaboration with ECOWAS and its partners proc eeded with the acquisition of 16 civilian drones for 
the benefit of its member countries as an innovative instrument in the monitoring of desert locust 
biotopes.  
In this regard, the secretariat of the CLCPRO and the ECOWAS commission organized a regional 
training session on the use of these drones for the benefit of the focal points of its 10 member 
countries including front line countries  (Chad, Mali, Mauritania, Morocco, Niger ) and invasion 
countries  (Algeria, Burkina Faso, Libya, Senegal, Tunisia ). The t raining session will run from 
14-26 June 2021 in Nouakchott, Mauritania.  G/SPS/GEN/1917  
 
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  2.6  Participation in the virtual consultative meeting for the formulation of a continental 
plant health strategy for Africa, 1-4 June 2021  
We participated in the virtual consultative meet ing for the formulation of a continental plant 
health strategy for Africa held from 1-4 June 2021. The meeting was attended by more than 
130 participants from regional economic communities (RECs), AUC technical institutions, private 
sector, academia, FAO, WHO, WTO, STDF, USDA, USAID, E uropean Union, other donors  and 
technical partners. There were fruitful discussions during the plenary and group work , and these 
yielded comprehensive outcomes that the hired consultant is compiling to draft the plant health 
strategy for Africa. Further consultations will follow to validate the strategy.  
3  FOOD SAFETY  
3.1  Participation and coordination for the Codex Alimentarius Committee meetings  
There was participation and coordination for the 14th Codex Committee on Contaminants in 
Food (CCCF14) meeting held from 3 -13 May 2021. A number of standards were discussed and 
adopted by the Committee for advancement in the Codex step-wise process and final adoption by 
the Commission at it s next meeting.  
3.2  Participation in the ev ents commemorating the 3rd World Food Safety Day 2021, 
organised virtually by the African Union Commission, 7 June 2021  
The third World Food Safety Day was commemorated globally on 7 June 2021, under the theme 
'Safe food today for a healthy tomorrow'. Whil st governments have focused mostly on food 
production and sufficiency to ensure availability of food to their populations, food safety, food quality 
and nutrition have, overall, been given lesser priority until recent years. Recognizing the impact 
unsafe f ood has on global development and the need to raise awareness on this complex issue, on 
20 December 2018, the United Nations General Assembly proclaimed 7 June as World Food Safety 
Day (WFSD). It is also noteworthy that in 2020, the World Health Assembly f urther adopted a 
decision on strengthening efforts on food safety to reduce the burden of foodborne disease. It is in 
this regard that the African Union Commission Department of Agriculture, Rural Development, 
Blue Economy and Sustainable Environment is or ganizing a virtual high level event on 6 June 2021 
to commemorate World Food Safety Day and contribute to the global awareness and efforts to 
address the problem of unsafe food.  
ECOWAS commission participated by providing and update on "the Implications of COVID -19 
pandemic to food safety and regional trade in Africa: case study of West Africa and the Sahel" . 
The awareness raising meeting was attended by over 100 participants from the African Union and 
its technical institutions, regional economic communities (RECs), AU -member States, ambassadors, 
parliamentarians, private sector, civil society, consumer associations, academia, donors and 
technical partners. A communique was issued at the end of the meeting as a roadmap of actions.  
3.3  Participati on in the virtual consultative meeting for the formulation of a continental 
food safety strategy for Africa, 8–11 June 2021  
We participated in the virtual consultative meeting for the formulation of a continental food 
safety strategy for Africa held from 8-11 June 2021. The meeting was attended by over 
128 participants from regional economic communities (RECs), African Union Commission  technical 
institutions, private sector, academia, FAO, WHO, WTO, STDF, USDA, USAID, E uropean Union, other 
donors and techni cal partners. There were fruitful discussions during the plenary and groups work 
and these yielded comprehensive outcomes that the hired consultant is compiling to draft the food 
safety strategy for Africa. Further consultations will follow to validate the  strategy.  
4  GENERAL CONCLUSION AND WAY FORWARD  
The ECOWAS Commission take this opportunity to thank all partners for their continuing 
support in advancing SPS related issues in the ECOWAS and Sahel sub -region , and to call for more 
collaboration, and support  for future implementation, especially in the new era of and post 
COVID -19. 
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