KAMPALA – The Uganda National Bureau of Standards (UNBS) has on June 12 held a breakfast meeting with stakeholders to celebrate its accreditation by the South African National Accreditation System (SANAS).
This endorses UNBS to offer the International Organisation for Standardisation (ISO) a Management Systems Certification.
This globally recognized certification mark was launched at Kampala Serena Hotel this morning.
The accreditation implies that the bureau is internationally recognized and is able to provide certification services to organizations for Food Safety Management Systems (ISO 22000) Quality Management Systems (ISO 9001).
The Chief Guest, Hon. Amelia Kyambadde the Minister of Trade Industry and Cooperatives, noted that the accreditation will enable local companies to get certified to international standards which will allow them access to international markets.
Adding on the minister’s submission, Dr. Ben Manyindo the UNBS Executive Director said this accreditation will give Ugandan companies an opportunity to certify their organisational systems and processes at an affordable cost to demonstrate that their services meet international standards and are therefore capable of meeting customer expectations.
“The accreditation means that UNBS has been accepted and recognised at the international level to offer ISO management systems certification in a competent, consistent and impartial manner,” Mayindo said.
This accreditation adds to the UNBS chemistry and microbiology laboratories which are internationally accredited by SANAS.
SANAS is a signatory to the International Accreditation Forum (IAF) which gives it worldwide recognition as a competent body for carrying out an independent evaluation of certification bodies against recognized standards.
International accreditation agreements provide a mechanism that allows accredited certificates to be accepted around the world which reduces the risk of products and services being rejected in international markets.
The Uganda National Bureau of Standards (UNBS) is a statutory body responsible for developing and promoting standards, quality products and services to facilitate fair trade, promote local industries and protect consumers.
