COMESA Launch Green Pass Scheme and Fish Inspection Certification Facility

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COMESA in collaboration with WorldFish has launched the Green Pass Scheme at Feira in Luangwa district bordering Zimbabwe and Mozambique at the confluence of the Luangwa and Zambezi rivers.

The launch also of the scheme also marked the official launch and hand over of the fish Inspection and Certification facility with funds from the European Union Commission. The facility shall provide the fish traders with laboratory facilities to ensure that the fish traded out of the country is of high quality and safe. This is as a result of limited value addition in fisheries and aquaculture coupled with the high level of post-harvest losses especially in small scales fisheries, and the absence of specific financial mechanism to support SMEs.

This project is aimed at simplifying border inspection procedures and harmonize regionally to support development of the Fish Regional Value chain which will enhance the quality and safety of fish traded in the region.

The main objective of the project is to integrate simplified, risk based SPS/TBT conformity assessment checks in border management in order to enhance intra-regional fish trade, especially for women, and thus realize the potential for trade to improve food and nutrition security as well as incomes.

Officially launching the facility, Minister of Fisheries and Livestock Kampamba Mulenga in a speech read for her by Luangwa District Commission, Ngoni Moyo said the government takes fish trade as a serious economic booster especially that the country boosts of over 40 percent of the water body on the Zambezi Basin.

The minister indicated that the government shall continue to support the ideas of COMESA which are aimed at uplifting the living standards of the citizens in the region.

“The Launch of this facility shall help many people’s lives who live near by these water bodies and will help uplift their living standards. We know that COMESA is doing so much in many sectors to help lift the living standards of the people in the region and as government we are committed to support the organisation,” Minister Mulenga said.

WorldFish Zambia, country Director Dr. Sloans Chimatiro indicated that the the collaborative efforts by his organization and COMESA shall result in having quality and safe fish to be traded across the region and beyond.

The Director added that the facility shall also help reduce the time spent at the borders as inspection of the fish shall be done at the harbor in Luangwa for fish coming from Mozambique.

Secretary General Chileshe Kapwepwe bemoaned the various charges that the fish traders incur as they cross the border adding that this defeats the purpose of the simplified trade regime STR. She promised that the COMESA Secretariat shall table the matter at the relevant fora to revisit some of the issues raised by the small scale cross border traders.

She said one of the reasons why intra-regional trade is lower than it could be is because of the costs of non-tariff measures (NTMs), including excessive documentation such as health certificates, import and export documentation and associated fees that are sometimes higher than they should be.

Ms Kapwepwe who was represented by Assistant Secretary General in Charge of Administration and Finance, Dr Dave Haman said COMESA shall continue to provide the needed support to help ease and reduce the cost of doing business by the Small Scale Cross Border Traders.

“I am aware that the costs incurred by cross border traders has been a subject of discussion in the last 3 days, with the traders and the border authorities from Kasumbalesa, Mwami/Mchinji, Chirundu and Luangwa,” Ms Kapwepwe said.

The Secretary General highlighted that some of the standards and SPS measures applied and hoped that the Green Pass as one of the tools adopted by COMESA governments to rationalize standards/SPS requirements and other border procedures will help in alleviating the problems associated with Non-tariff measures.

The launch was preceded by a three-day training workshop for fish traders and regulatory authorities from Congo DR, Malawi, Mozambique, Zambia and Zimbabwe.