EAC Moves To Harmonise Veterinary Standards To Boost Continental Livestock Trade

By Janet Chpkurui

Regional policymakers are pushing regulatory reforms to align veterinary medicine standards across East Africa, a move expected to support the growth of livestock markets and strengthen agricultural value chains.

Experts argue that fragmented regulatory frameworks, inconsistent veterinary certification procedures and weak coordination between border authorities continue to slow livestock trade across the continent despite growing regional demand for animal products.

This emerged during regional technical consultations in Naivasha bringing together veterinary regulators, trade officials and livestock sector experts from the Horn of Africa and the Sahel to discuss mechanisms for facilitating cross-border livestock trade under the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA).

The meeting, organised under the African Pastoral Markets Development (APMD) Platform led by the African Union’s Inter-African Bureau for Animal Resources (AU-IBAR), is designed to translate policy commitments on livestock trade into operational systems that can be implemented along regional trade corridors.

Dr Adelaide Ayoyi, East African Community Coordinator for Mutual Recognition Procedures, said aligning veterinary medicine registration systems across partner states will help reduce duplication while accelerating access to animal health products.

“We are working toward a system where one scientific assessment of a veterinary medicine can be trusted across EAC partner states to accelerate trade and improve access to safe and effective animal health products,” said Dr Ayoyi.

She explained that the regional Mutual Recognition Procedure (SOP) enables one country to evaluate a veterinary medicinal product while other partner states review and adopt the assessment, significantly shortening approval timelines.

The initiative is part of broader efforts to harmonise regulatory frameworks governing livestock trade in order to improve disease control, ensure product safety and strengthen livestock value chains across the region.

Sanitary and phytosanitary compliance remains a central pillar of livestock trade, requiring exporting countries to certify that animals and animal products meet the importing country’s health and safety standards.

Daniel Karugu, a sanitary and phytosanitary measures expert, said strengthening disease surveillance systems, veterinary certification procedures and inspection regimes is critical to facilitating safe livestock trade.

“Effective SPS systems based on science and international standards are essential for ensuring healthy animals, safe food products and predictable livestock trade across borders,” said Karugu.

Under international livestock trade rules, consignments must be accompanied by veterinary certificates confirming the disease status of animals, results of inspections and compliance with sanitary requirements.

Experts say inconsistent implementation of sanitary and veterinary certification requirements across African countries has created significant technical barriers, slowing livestock trade and limiting the ability of producers and traders to access expanding regional markets.

Standardisation of livestock production practices, veterinary systems and food safety requirements is increasingly emerging as a key pillar in efforts to strengthen animal health safeguards, build consumer confidence and expand intra-African livestock trade.

Liliane Kamanzi, Project Coordinator at the African Organisation for Standardisation (ARSO), said harmonised continental standards are helping build regulatory frameworks that support competitive livestock markets.

“Harmonised African standards are essential for reducing technical barriers, strengthening food safety systems and enabling livestock producers to access regional and international markets,” said Kamanzi.

ARSO has already coordinated the development of numerous African standards covering livestock production systems, feed safety, meat hygiene, traceability and sustainability in animal agriculture.

The Naivasha consultations are also examining mechanisms for improving governance of cross-border livestock movement along key trade corridors linking countries in the Horn of Africa and the Sahel.

These include proposals to develop mutual recognition agreements covering livestock movement permits, vaccination records and sanitary certificates as well as standard operating procedures for livestock trade corridors.

Officials say the reforms are expected to reduce regulatory fragmentation at border points, speed up livestock movement and support the formalisation of livestock trade across the continent.