UNBS HOSTS NATIONAL INITIATIVE TO STRENGTHEN UGANDA’S FOOD SAFETY LABORATORY INFRASTRUCTURE.

  23rd July , 2026 ,       Hits: 235

 The Uganda National Bureau of Standards (UNBS) is hosting a two-day national engagement in collaboration with the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), to validate and endorse recommendations aimed at strengthening Uganda’s food safety laboratory infrastructure.

The engagement, taking place in Kampala, brings together government institutions, public and private laboratories, research institutions, academia, the private sector, development partners and other key stakeholders to build consensus on priority actions for enhancing the country's food safety testing capacity, as part of the FAO Project, "Regional Strengthening of Food Safety Standards for Trade and Public Health Promotion," funded by the African Development Bank (AfDB).

Food safety remains a critical component of Uganda's public health, food and nutrition security, agricultural transformation and trade competitiveness. However, Uganda continues to face challenges related to aflatoxins and other mycotoxins, pesticide residues, heavy metals, microbial contamination and poor food handling practices, all of which pose significant risks to consumer health and limit access to domestic and international markets.

To address these challenges, a comprehensive assessment of Uganda's food testing laboratories was conducted to examine laboratory testing methods, equipment and infrastructure, human resource capacity, quality management systems, proficiency testing, and accreditation readiness in accordance with internationally recognized standards, including the International Organization for Standardization (ISO) standards, ISO/IEC 17025 on General requirements for the competence of testing and calibration laboratories and ISO/IEC 17043 on General requirements for the competence of proficiency testing providers.

Some of the food testing laboratories sampled include; the UNBS Food Safety laboratories, Chemiphar Laboratories Limited, NARO Biopesticide Innovation Laboratories and Government Analytical Laboratories.

Following the assessments, the stakeholders called for;

•           Strengthened policy, legal, and regulatory framework for food analytical laboratories

•           Improvement in the accessibility of laboratory facilities in the country

•           Acquisition of modern analytical equipment and materials to strengthen the analytical capacity of the laboratories

•           Strengthening laboratory personnel capacity and competence to ensure national recognition

•           Enhancement of national proficiency testing schemes

•           Expanding the quality management systems to ensure accreditation of the full scope of the tests required for pesticide residues, mycotoxins, and heavy metal contaminants

•           Development and dissemination of communication and advocacy materials such as policy briefs and advocate for recognition of the laboratory testing profession within Government

•           Establishment of a functional national platform/network of laboratories in Uganda as well as centralized information portal for the national testing scope and range for all laboratories

Strengthening laboratory systems is expected to improve the country's ability to detect food contaminants, support evidence-based regulation, enhance consumer protection, reduce food losses, boost confidence in Uganda's food products, and improve access to regional and international markets.

The initiative also supports Uganda's Food Systems Transformation Agenda, National Development Plan IV (NDP IV), aspirations in the AU Comprehensive Africa Agriculture Development Programme and the United Nations Sustainable Development Cooperation Framework (UNSDCF), all of which recognize food safety as a key driver of sustainable economic growth and public health.

About UNBS

The Uganda National Bureau of Standards is a government agency mandated to develop, promote and enforce standards to protect public health, safety, and the environment as well as ensure fairness in trade and precision in industry through reliable measurement systems.

For more information, please contact,

Sylvia Kirabo,

Principal Public Relations Officer,

Telephone: 256 417 333250 / 0703 196903

E-mail: sylvia.kirabo@unbs.go.ug