With support from the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) and the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) the Food Risk Analysis and Regulatory Excellence Platform (PARERA) of Université Laval (ULaval) is collaborating with the Department of Rural Economy and Agriculture (DREA) of the African Union Commission and the Sub-Saharan Africa Section of the Association of Official Analytical Chemists (AOAC) International to improve food regulatory laboratory testing capacity in African countries through a targeted laboratory training initiative.

The training will include on-line and practical training sessions related to the analysis of residues of pesticides and targeted organic contaminants in food, such as mycotoxins.The one-year initiative will use both on-line training features as well as a practical training program in a laboratory facility affiliated with PARERA’s International Food Safety Training Laboratory (IFSTL). The program has been designed to adapt to the current restrictions imposed by the COVID-19 global pandemic. It will target up to 80 senior food analysts and other analytical scientists from the African continent for the online component. Up to 8 food analysts will be selected on the basis of the results of the assessments conducted for the on-line training, to follow the practical training in the IFSTL facilities.

This call is open to candidates from African Union Member States interested in following the planned online food safety laboratory training.

Program Information

The training will be implemented from Dec 1st, 2020 to May 2021.

It will cover the following topics:

1. Principles of readiness and operation of instrumental analytical methods, useful for pesticide residue and mycotoxin determination
2. Rapid techniques for the detection and quantification of mycotoxins in food matrices

The online training material will attempt to reproduce some face to face training, with access to the equipment and demonstration of its use, through on-line videos. The training will also include a component on quality assurance/quality control (QA/QC) approaches.

All material will be made available on an e-learning platform for access by trainees. A tentative program for the planned modules is appended to this document.

Candidates interested in enrolling in the e-learning program are requested to fill out the form in the side bar.

Program Eligibility

Eligibility to the e-learning and subsequent practical training program include:

1. Training in food analytical disciplines, with a focus on food chemical analysis as demonstrated by a degree, certificate, or other attestations (e.g. publications in scientific literature)
2. Current work in a food analytical laboratory with contribution to testing for food regulatory purposes (e.g. compliance verification, enforcement, etc)
3. Support from immediate supervisor and higher management to follow the training, including the subsequent face-to-face training should the candidate be selected on the basis of results of the on-line sessions
4. The ability to follow the training in English with the acknowledgement that some material may be available in French as well, including the support provided by the training instructors
5. Advantage: Contribution to a food analytical community nationally or regionally, such as affiliation with AOAC International or the Sub-Saharan Africa Section of AOAC International

Interested and eligible candidates are invited to fill out and send the Candidate Enrollment Document attached to [email protected] with the mention : “IFSTL2020-2021 Training” in the subject line.  Successful candidates will be contacted and given specific details related to the training.

Applications can be submitted until November 27th, 2020 at midnight GMT.