Participants in a group photograph after the symposiumO
An estimated 137,000 people in Africa die every year
from contaminated food, the World Health Organisation (WHO) has said.
According to the WHO, the African region has the highest
burden of food-borne diseases with more than 91 million people falling ill from
consuming contaminated food.
“Children under five years of age carry 40% of
foodborne disease burden, with 125 000 deaths every year,” Dr. Owen Kaluwa said
at the maiden commemoration of World Food Safety Day in Accra.
Themed ‘Food Safety, Everyone’s Business’, the day was
to highlight the relevant food safety issues in order to develop interventions
and recommendations that could be used to promote safe food practices among
Ghanaian populace.
Dr. Kaluwa, who spoke at the symposium, said globally
600 million, representing almost one in 10 people in the world fall ill after
eating contaminated food, with 420, 000 dying every year, resulting in the loss
of 33 million healthy life years.
“A recent World Bank study finds that the public
health cost estimate of foodborne diseases in low and middle-income economies
alone is a staggering $15.1 billion,” he added.
Dr. Kaluwa said food-borne
diseases are preventable and everyone from policymakers to consumers has an
important role to play, adding that “food can become contaminated at any point
of production and distribution, there is, therefore, a need for all food
producers, handlers and consumers to understand the importance of adopting
basic hygienic practices when buying, selling and preparing food to protect
their health and that of the wider community.”
Dr. Abebe Haile-Gabriel, Assistant Director General
and Regional Representative for Africa, Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO),
indicated that the commemoration marks an important milestone for the organisation’s
other partners, as together they scale up their joint efforts in food safety
advocacy and mobilisation of partnerships.
He said the FAO has been supporting the efforts of the
government of Ghana in improving the safety and nutritional balance of food
through for example collaboration with the Food & Drugs Authority on
‘Healthy Street Food Incentives’ to boost the safety and nutritional balance of
street food.
“Another TCP is being finalised to support to the
strengthening of food safety control systems in collaboration with the Food
& Drugs Authority, Veterinary Services Directorate, Plant Protection & Regulatory
Services, Ghana Standards Authority and the Ministry of Fisheries & Aquaculture
Development,” he added.
Delesi Mimi Darko, Chief Executive Officer (CEO) Food 7 Drugs Authority (FDA), emphasized the
need for urgent actions to be taken to prevent food contamination “as any
adverse food safety incident may have global negative effects on public health,
trade and economy.”
She said improved food safety results in reduced
food-borne illness, protect customers, improve one’s stands within a community
and also enhance consumer confidence.
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