Environmental Health Science Department
Food Safety
Assignment Report of Janine Rey
Lecturer and Laboratory Practitioner at the Haute Ecole Valaisanne
Polytechnic of Namibia, Windhoek
August 2 – August 30, 2010
download report (pdf)
The goal of my assignment was to help set up the Environmental Health Science (EHS) laboratories and put in place practical training for the EHS bachelor students, who will mostly become inspectors in the field of food safety, pollution and occupational health and safety. This goal included:
- Reviewing the current status of the laboratories
- Reviewing and establishing the inventory, quality and security management of the laboratories
- Doing praticals with the students
- Making recommendations for the future
In spite of many preparatory e-mail exchanges and discussions, the situation I found in the EHS department and its laboratory was more difficult than what I expected. The department has access to only one laboratory with hardly any equipment in it. The well-equipped biomedical laboratories are unfortunately not open to the EHS department. All this made the first week of my assignment rather challenging and I was worried I would not be able to deliver on the assignment goals.
Despite the very limiting equipment situation I was able to do simple practicals with the students. The work with the students was very rewarding and they showed a keen interest in practical application. It became very clear that the students have had very little practical training to date and that establishing laboratory training in EHS is very important, so that the graduates will be in a position to meet the market needs of the meat- and fish-export industry, as well as the mining and other sectors.
In addition to working with the students, Mr Francis Nyionkuru and I worked together a lot and put in place simple procedures and inventory management, which is key to the running and maintenance of any laboratory and ensuring that the expensive equipment has a long life-cycle.
I also had the opportunity to accompany Charmaine Jansen, the head of department, and the students to visit Namwater, Namibian Standard Institution Laboratories and the fishery Tunocar in Walvis Bay. These excursions highlighted what know-how the market needs and that ISO Quality Management Standards are becoming an important topic in Namibian organizations.
Not all of the goals set for my assignment could be accomplished. But I am convinced that through my work and many discussions with representatives of the EHS department and school management, the importance of laboratory work and a close cooperation of the laboratory experts and lecturers have been highlighted. The clear need for EHS experts with practical training in the Namibia market is encouraging and I hope the EHS department at the Polytechnic can grab the opportunity and establish itself as THE school producing high-quality food safety, OHS and pollution experts for Namibia.
For me the four weeks working and living at the Polytechnic where an unforgettable experience both on a professional and personal level. It was fascinating for me to be part of this young and developing EHS department and to see the huge need and potential for EHS experts in the dynamic and fast developing environment of Namibia. Working with the students, Francis Nyionkuru, Belinda R. Tsauses and Charmaine Jansen was very rewarding and I would like to thank them for their warm reception, good cooperation and their patience with my limited English knowledge, my many questions about the organization and processes and letting me participate in their daily work and life which has allowed me to gain a better understanding of Namibia.
Sion, September 7, 2010