Ethiopia Global GAP certification to ensure international market access
At the close of August this year, Ethiopian Horticulture Producer Exporters Association (EHPEA) played host to the Global Good Agricultural Practice Ethiopian Tour. During the tour, presentations on Global GAP flower benchmark standards were made. This was the first GLOBALG.A.P. TOUR stop ever in Ethiopia, and the message was clear: GLOBALG.A.P. Certification facilitates international market access.
The TOUR 2015 Stop in Ethiopia was opened by Mr. Tewodros Zewdie, Executive Director of the Ethiopian Horticulture Producer Exporters Association (EHPEA), after which Mr. Alem Gerima, Director General of the Ethiopian Horticulture Development Agency (EHDA), delivered the keynote speech highlighting the importance of certification of primary products for local production and exports.
Mr. Les Hillowitz from CropLife Africa Middle East updated the delegates about the container management project in Africa. He emphasized how important GLOBALG.A.P. is for the industry and that the GLOBALG.A.P. Standards have helped their industry a lot to improve container management in many regions.
Husam Al Dakak,
Expert Sourcing and Purchase at the Import Promotion Desk (IPD), remarked that “ Mr. Hillowitz’s contribution on the very sensitive topic of waste management was very interesting. Our experience shows that this is a very challenging topic in the agroindustry in Ethiopia. I am confident and full of hope that the spreading of the GLOBALG.A.P. Standard would help alleviate this challenge, as well as increase export opportunities, which would lead to enhancing the prosperity of the country.”
Among the standards in the Global G.A.P. are harvesting and post harvesting treatment, fertiliser use, soil management and propagation materials. With the last Global G.A.P. version which is Version Four, 15 local fruit and vegetable companies as well as three flower companies are certified.
