The heads of the ministries of Fisheries and Aquaculture (MPA), and of Agriculture, Livestock and Supply (MAPA) will sign an amendment of the Technical Cooperation Agreement (TCA) on Monday in Brasilia, subscribed in 2010.
This agreement aims to develop actions related to fisheries and aquatic sanitary and the amendment will allow its validity, currently four years, to be extended until 2018.
Since 2009, the MPA is responsible for the national fisheries-aquaculture policy while the MAP is responsible for the food supply in Brazilian territory, including fish.
The association between the two ministries helps to harmonize the procedures related to the fisheries-aquaculture sanitary and strengthen the official veterinary service (SVO) in Brazil.
Among other actions, it is expected that the new agreement will help improve the fishery resource import and export authorization and control in terms of animal health issues.
In addition, it is expected that it is possible to improve the control over the movement of fishery resources within the country, and favour the establishment of control programmes and aquatic animal disease eradication, and monitoring and control of residues and contaminants in production systems, reported the MPA.
The cooperation agreement covers three Inter-Ministerial Guide Rules (INI):
N° 7 (8 May, 2012): it establishes the National Bivalve Mollusc Hygiene-Health Control Programme;
N° 32 (16 August, 2014): it rules laboratory material import for LANAGRO, Renaqua networks and for research and diagnosis;
N° 4 (30 May 2014): it sets a fiscal note as proof of origin for raw material transit for industries.
In 2013, health specialists of both ministries participated in a mission to Vietnam in order to assess the local SVO and collect data to support pangasius (Pangasius spp.), tilapia (Oreochromis niloticus) and barramundi or Asian seabass (Lates calcarifer) fillet import risk analysis import for human consumption.
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