JICA one of Bangladesh’s most trusted development partners: BFSA chairman

The Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) has long served as one of Bangladesh’s most reliable friends and trusted development partners, Bangladesh Food Safety Authority (BFSA) Chairman Md Safiqul Islam said on Tuesday.

He made the remarks as the chief guest at the final result-sharing workshop of the "Strengthening the Inspection, Regulatory and Coordination Activities of the Bangladesh Food Safety Authority" (STIRC) project, held at the BFSA training room in the capital.

The STIRC initiative was implemented with technical support from JICA to bolster BFSA's inspection mechanisms, laboratory testing, and regulatory frameworks.

"The achievements of this project will serve as an essential foundation for building a robust, science-based, and integrated food safety ecosystem in Bangladesh," said Safiqul, an additional secretary. "This initiative will help ensure safe food at all levels through the collective engagement of state institutions, the food industry, and consumers."

Senior Representative of JICA Bangladesh Shoji Izumi noted that ensuring food safety goes beyond technical compliance, directly influencing public health protection, consumer trust, and broader economic development.

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Initiated in 2019, the STIRC project upgraded field-level food testing by establishing mini-laboratories across 18 district food safety offices while extending operational and technical support to 64 district offices and eight metropolitan units.

The project also conducted regulatory reviews of existing food safety acts, rules, and standards, while delivering specialised training on inspection, sampling, Good Manufacturing Practices (GMP), and Japanese 5S-Kaizen methodologies for food safety officers, laboratory analysts, and food business operators. Targeted hygiene campaigns were also rolled out across schools, universities, bakeries, sweetmeat outlets, and restaurants.

Chaired by BFSA Secretary and STIRC Project Director Srabasti Roy, the workshop drew senior officials from the Ministry of Food, development partners, industry leaders, and civil society representatives.