September 2018

Notes from the Editor The AFRAC Marketing and Communication Working Group presents the 8th edition of the AFRAC Newsletter to keep our readers up to date on the accreditation activities within the region and beyond. This edition includes the historical milestone achieved by AFRAC with the recognition of AFRAC MRA by both International Accreditation Forum and International Laboratory Accreditation Cooperation. The transition by Accreditation bodies to the newly published ISO standards has been on the front burner and AFRAC is matching its role of driving this process within the AFRAC AB’s with capacity building programs succinctly delivered to ensure that AFRAC AB’s meet the agreed datelines for transition. This edition contains memoirs of trainings held for AFRAC peer evaluators and requirements of ISO 17025: 2017 in Kenya and ISO/IEC 17025:2017 Assessors’ Training in Nigeria. The 2018 World Accreditation Day was celebrated by many African Countries. It provided a veritable environment to advocate for Accreditation amongst stakeholders and policy makers. Although the

global theme was the same, it is amazing how country approaches to this celebration were as diverse as our cultures, yet in harmony with the theme, ‘Accreditation: Delivering a safer world’. This is a must read for a better understanding of the peculiarities of the Accreditation landscape across Africa. This edition will not be complete without the report of the AFRAC mid-year meetings held in Nairobi, Kenya and the IAF-ILAC mid- term meetings held in Frankfurt, Germany. Updates on the growing membership of AFRAC published in this edition presents a graphical representation of the Countries in Africa hosting a member of AFRAC. The AFRAC Map also provides information on the membership status of each AFRAC member at a glance. The AFRAC Marketing and Communications Working Group thanks all the contributors for submitting the articles on time. Your feedback on the articles and how this newsletter can be improved to make AFRAC News a preferred read will be welcomed. Kindly send your comments to fikiles@sanas.co.za . Please feel free to get in touch with any of the below representatives who are members of the AFRAC Marketing and Communications Working Group (AFRAC MCWG) or the AFRAC Secretariat to submit your articles:

• Ms. Susanah Munyiri (Convenor - KENAS)

• Ms. Fikile Skosana (AFRAC Secretariat - SANAS)

• Mr. Moez Boughlami (TUNAC)

• Mr. Getnet Tsigemelak (ENAO)

• Ms. Cheshta Matadeen-Domun (MAURITAS)

• Ms. Jeanne Francoise Ranorovelo (SADCAS)

• Eng. Mohammed Hassan (EGAC)

• Ms. Elizabeth Muema (KENAS)

• Mr. Ibra Fail Gaye (LSAHE)

• Ms. Lawrena Okoro (NiNAS) Please circulate the newsletter to your contacts as you will be contributing in no small measure to the AFRAC mission “To fac ilitate the use of accreditation as a tool to support trade and industrial development, improve competitiveness of African products and enhance the protection of the health and safety of the public and the environment.” With your support, AFRAC will ferry the message of the impact of accreditation in building confidence and trust in African products and services to all nooks and crannies. Enjoy your reading. Lawrena Okoro - AFRAC Newsletter Editor

Notes from the Chair As African Accreditation Cooperation (AFRAC) chair, it gives me a great pleasure to convey warm congratulatory message to all AFRAC members, cooperative partners, regional accreditations that supported the capacity building of AFRAC evaluators, AFRAC committee chairs and members, AFRAC evaluators and others that directly and/or indirectly supported AFRAC in achieving signatory status to the ILAC MRA for calibration and testing laboratories (ISO/IEC 17025), medical testing laboratory (ISO 15189), inspection body (ISO/IEC 17020) and IAF MLA for Management System (ISO/IEC 17021-1) for sub scopes QMS and EMS accreditation programs from 22 May, 2018. To maintain the success and extend AFRAC's MRA and MLA accreditation programs, there is an increasing need to strengthen our synergy of work among all the actors. What AFRAC has so far achieved helps to facilitate the operationalization of African continently free trade area which undersign the processes among the African

Union Member States and gives confidence and power in regional trade negotiation with other regions. Since Government and Regulatory bodies work to ensure and realize that businesses provide safe working environment as per Government policies and regulatory bodies requirements, and control the implementation of technical requirements for products and services placed in the market through verification by accredited conformity assessment bodies in the way that gives confidence to the regulators and customers to rely on the products and services that complies with the stipulated technical requirements that ensure safety and health of all users hence, accreditation also gives confidence and power in regional trade negotiation with other regions AFRAC as a unit of the Pan African Quality Infrastructures in collaboration with ARSO, AFRIMET and AFSEC are working for the creation of fertile condition for Africa continent free trade area market among the African Union member states to achieve the ultimate goal of one regional economy. In this regard, even though the urgency for intra Africa trade is very high, however, because of poor infrastructure among African member states, the momentum of intra Africa trade is not as anticipated. Considering the economic challenges and opportunities of the continental free trade area, PAQI had developed a five years (2017 - 2021) strategic plan implemented by PAQI units, and the strategic plan of AFRAC is fully in line with PAQI's strategic plan focused on green economy, communication, agro processing, mining and trade and industry and the implementation is going on as anticipated. To support the economy of the continent it is also concomitant to apply PAQI along the value chain to trace back and correct in a timely manner, problems arising from substandard, counterfeit and adulterated products which are the cancer of free trade competition that ultimately affects health and safety of the society. When PAQI is applied along the value chain, it can also enhance the supply chain of quality agricultural products to the agro-processing industry, and this will create favorable condition for even house hold farmers to engage and produce agricultural products that serves as input to the agro-processing industry. Therefore, we need to have requirements for the products, processes and services along the whole chain to be verified by accredited conformity assessment bodies that makes competitive the agrarian economy and empower the house hold farmers economically. It is also instrumental in gearing the small with medium and, medium with large enterprises along the value chain in the manufacturing industry. The AFRAC MRA and MLA shall be accepted by the African member state regulators thereby properly promoting accreditation through insisting that conformity assessment bodies attest to their competence by AFRAC arrangement members accrediting their activities, so that the accredited activities gain international acceptance. This with other incentives, attract investments to Africa that ultimately creates employment opportunity that benefits youths and hinders the rising quest in Africa for illegal immigration which is most unsafe to human. AFRAC has four membership category (MRA signatory, full membership, associate membership and stakeholder membership) and currently AFRAC comprises five MRA signatories, two full, two associate and six stakeholder members. These numbers are very few compared to the number of African union member states, professional associations and organizations operating on quality related issues in the continent. For AFRAC to be a strong accreditation voice of Africa, it needs all African union member states, the relevant organizations such as accreditation focal points to join any of the AFRAC membership category based on the category which they are in compliance. Doing that, all of the African member states can be knowledgeable, contribute to what AFRAC is doing and benefit from the success of AFRAC. Let all of us work to make AFRAC the strong accreditation voice of Africa Araya Fesseha - AFRAC Chair

2018 Joint ILAC and IAF Mid-term Meetings The 2018 joint mid-term meetings of the International Laboratory Accreditation Cooperation (ILAC) and the International Accreditation Forum (IAF) were held at Le Meridien Park Hotel and the InterContinental Hotel in Frankfurt, Germany from 4 to 11 April 2018. A total of 320 delegates registered for the meetings with slightly less attending compared to 200 who attended the 2017 mid-term meetings. The following economies from the Africa region attending the meetings: SADCA, AFRAC and ARAC represented by some members of the regional co-operations’ executive members; the 15 SADC countries represented by SADCA; and accreditation bodies EGAC (Egypt) KENAS (Kenya); MAURITAS (Mauritius); NINAS (Nigeria); SADCAS (13 SADC Member States); SANAS (South Africa); TUNAC (Tunisia) and Morocco (SEMAC). The meetings started with a series of IAF/ILAC Working Groups meetings followed by ILAC and IAF Committee meetings some of which were held in parallel. The ILAC and IAF Executive Committee and Joint Executive Committee meetings were held during the last 3 days of the meeting with the IAF Executive Committee being the last to meet. The objectives of the IAF meetings were to progress the IAF agenda, update members on developments in accreditation internationally and to input into the developments. AFRAC being a regional body member of IAF is obliged to attend the IAF meetings including the IAF Executive Committee. WAY FORWARD/ACTION PLAN/RECOMMENDATIONS IAF Management Systems Certification Working Group meeting - The meeting was held on 4 April 2018 at the Le Meridien Hotel with most of the meeting being dedicated to 9 discussion papers submitted such as on application of MD 1 to multisite certification, Non Accredited certification (IAF Resolution 2015-14), ISO 9001 and 14001 transition ILAC AIC – The AIC meeting which was held at the Intercontinental Hotel was attended by over 200 delegates was held from held on the 4th and 5th April 2018. The following are the key issues from the meeting some of which are for noting whilst others are for action especially by the regions.

• The AIC will establish a Frequenty Asked Questions (FAQ) Task Force (TF)

• Revision of ILAC G17 and taking note of other existing documents such as the EA document and APLAC TC 005.

• Members interested in participating in revision of ILAC G3: Guidelines for Training Courses for Assessors Used by Accreditation Bodies, shall inform the chair with a preference of one member per region.

• The ILAC AIC Task Force will prepare a ToR for revision of ILAC P9 in order to establish a WG that undertakes the revision of ILAC P9.

• ILAC G26: The substantive comments from the 60 day ILAC circulation of Guideline for the Implementation of a Medical Laboratory Accreditation were dealt with. Discussion on whether sampling as a standalone in the medical field can be accredited to ISO 15189 and noting that 3 accreditation bodies were already accrediting sampling as a standalone in the medical field.

• On exploring extension of application of ISO 15189, an experience sharing session was held during the ILAC AIC meeting. Presentations were made by SAS, UKAS, NATA, EMA and DANAK on application of ISO 15189 in the medical imaging area with some accreditation bodies having accredited medical imaging.

• Systematic Review of ISO 15189 – The meeting was informed about the result of the systematic review of ISO 15189 with the standard being confirmed.

• The P10 Task Force will prepare a ToR for revision of ILAC P10: ILAC Policy on the Traceability of Measurement Results.

• The P14 Task Force will prepare a ToR for revision of ILAC P14: ILAC Policy for Uncertainty in Calibration The OIML and the BIPM are invited to join the work.

• The ILAC AIC Working Group (WG) on Scopes will work jointly with WG 17034 and WG 17043 to develop a draft of a revised ILAC G18 based on the summary developed at the WG meeting on 22nd October 2017 and agreed in the AIC on 25th October 2017.

• WG Sampling – The first meeting of the WG on sampling was attended by 50 delegates. Most delegates welcomed the inclusion of sampling as a standalone activity. The meeting further agreed to have a workshop/survey on sharing experiences first before going ahead with a guidance document.

IAF Technical Committee WG Product Certification Accreditation (PCA) - The PAC has issued a guidance document for the accreditation of product certification bodies which document could be valuable to all the accreditation body members of these 3 regions (EA, PAC and IAAC) that are signatory to the IAF MLA for Products. The WG further explored the proposal for an IAF-OIML joint draft assessment document and recommended to the IAF TC to initiate the endorsement of the already produced OIML document.

WG Person Certification - The Joint Task Group for Assessors will undertake a survey of the knowledge required for an assessor to be declared competent. The survey will be reviewed by the WG and then sent to all IAF members. WG Forests – The meeting was informed about the status of the OEFC documents as follows: PEFC ST 1001 and PEFC GD 1007approved; PEFC ST 1002 at Final draft stage; and PEFC ST 1003 at public consultation stage. WG Food - ISO FDIS 22000 was issued and the WG noted the need to publish a transition policy as soon as the standard is published. Revision of HACCP guidelines underway at CODEX and IAF represented in the revisions. ISO/TS 22003 under revision by ISO/CASCO/TC34/SC17 and the results of the survey undertaken by the WG will input to the revisions.

WG Medical Devices (ISO 13485) – The WG is planning to start the revisions of MD 8: IAF Mandatory Document for the application of ISO/IEC 17011 in the Field of Medical Device Quality Management Systems (ISO 13485 and MD 9: IAF Mandatory Document for the Application of ISO/IEC 17021 in the Field of Medical Device Quality Management Systems (ISO 13485) following the publication of ISO/IEC17011:2017. WG Greenhouse Gases (GHG) and Energy (ISO 14065) – The WG recommended the TC to review and revise if so deemed necessary IAF MD 6: IAF Mandatory Document for the Application of ISO 14065:2013 and IAF MD14: Application of ISO/IEC 17011 in Greenhouse Gas Validation and Verification (ISO14065:2013) for the purpose of ICAO CORSIA and related IAF MLA activities. Task Force on Computer Assisted Auditing Techniques (TF CAAT) – This Task Force was set up to revise MD 4: IAF Mandatory Document for the use of Computer Assisted Auditing Techniques (“CAAT”) for Accredited Certification of Management Systems. Task Force OHSAS 18001 Migration to ISO 45001 – Following the publication of IAF MD 21: Requirements for the Migration to ISO 45001:2018 from OHSAS 18001:2007 the Task Force was disbanded. ILAC Inspection Committee

WG 3 Guidance on expressing inspection scopes in accreditation documents - The need for this additional guidance document was identified due to the parameters required for inspection scopes that are not required for laboratories. The document had previously been circulated to the Membership for a 60-day comment period

Section 2.3 of ILAC G 27 - At the Vancouver meeting a small TFG was set up to propose how to amend the text in ILAC G27 A draft proposal for how to amend section 2.3 in ILAC G27 was presented during the meeting. Reports from regions- Reports were presented by representatives of 5 regions with Mrs Maureen P Mutasa presenting the SADCA report and MR Mpho Phaloane presenting the AFRAC report. Information on current and future work items at ISO CASCO of interest for the accreditation of inspection bodies:

• ISO 17000 is also being revised with work starting in September 2017.

• ISO CASCO WG 46 working on ISO/IEC 17029 verification and validation activities – ISO /IEC 17029 will be the level 3 document whilst ISO 14065 will be level 4 document.

• Subcontracting in the field of inspection was proposed as a possible topic for a new workshop activity. ILAC Marketing and Communications Committee/IAF Communications and Marketing Committee – 2018 World Accreditation Day (WAD) promotional materials had been produced including a video in various languages. Members were encouraged to use the materials and also celebrate the day in order to raise awareness on accreditation. The theme for 2019 WAD 2019 is “Accreditation adding value to supply chains” Evidence gathering for the Public Sector Assurance site and Business benefits of standards and accreditation site is ongoing. Based on the Summary of IAF Members' Voting and Survey Return Records for the period January to March 2018 there was a remarkable improvement from AFRAC members with voting performance varying from 88. 9 % for KENAS to 100% with most AFRAC members registering 100%. BENEFITS OF THE MEETING

The 2018 mid - term ILAC/IAF meetings were a good opportunity for networking, sharing experiences, keeping abreast with developments in accreditation and more important having in sight of what is on the horizon and inputting into the development of IAF policies and documents which serve as the basis for international recognition for the region AFRAC. The 2018 ILAC/IAF Annual meetings will be held in Singapore from 22 to 31 October 2018. The 2019 mid - term meetings will be held in Buenos Aires, Argentina. Maureen Primrose Mutasa, Vice Chairman, AFRAC and CEO, SADCAS

Establishment of the Sudanese Accreditation Council Sudanese Accreditation Council (SDAC) was established as government body having its own legal instrument. The mandate of SDAC is to accredit, by formal third party recognition, the competence of Conformity Assessment Bodies (CABs) to perform specific activities, such as test, calibration, certification or inspection. The establishment of SDAC as a national accreditation body for Sudan was based on the following documents:

• Validation of the Council as independent entity (Feb/2015);

• Council foundation decision (Jun/2015);

• Appointment of the Secretary General (Aug/2015);

• Approval of organizational and functional structures (June/2016).

SDAC is a member of The Arab Accreditation Cooperation (ARAC), The African Accreditation Cooperation (AFRAC) and The Accreditation Council of the Standards and Metrology Institute for the Islamic Countries (SMIIC – AC). With regard to conformity assessment practice in Sudan, there are a number of institutions both public and private (e.g The Sudanese Standards and Metrology Organization SSMO, Ministry of Health, Ministry of Agriculture), that perform conformity assessment activities, which include reference to standards, quality and technical regulations. Some institutions, e.g SSMO, have already implemented ISO/IEC 17025:2005 in a considerable number of laboratories in the center and entry points. The implementation of ISO/IEC 17020 for inspection activities, and ISO 17065:2013 for product certification has already been initiated since 2016. In order to comply with WTO regulations, SSMO in collaboration with the relevant stakeholders initiated the process of technical regulations development based on the obligations of Sudan stated in the Action Plan for accession, 2017-2018. Sudan has recently prepared its National Quality Policy that aims at strengthening the National Quality Infrastructure (NQI) in order to achieve accelerated economic growth, increase in exports, ensure supply of safe quality product at competitive prices and contribute towards the protection of the environment. The Sudanese National Quality Policy (SNQP) aims also to facilitate the development of the Sudanese National Quality Infrastructure and a technical regulations regime with proper division of responsibilities i.e. division of work. SNQP will take into consideration international best practice and regional and international obligations.

SDAC signs MOU with ARAC SDAC Lead assessor training on ISO/IEC

17025

Dr Kamal Elhadi – SDAC

AFRAC MRA Internationally Recognized AFRAC (African Accreditation Cooperation) achieved recognition status to the ILAC Mutual Recognition Arrangement (MRA) and the International Accreditation Forum (IAF) Multi-Lateral Arrangement (MLA) on the 22nd May 2018. This came after a rigorous joint IAF/ILAC evaluation of AFRAC and endorsement of the following recommendations by the IAF MLA Committee and the ILAC Arrangement Council:

• AFRAC be accepted as an IAF MLA member for the accreditation of conformity assessment bodies for : o Management Systems (ISO/IEC 17021-1: For sub-scopes Quality Management Systems (QMS) and

Environmental Management Systems (EMS)

• Recognition of the AFRAC MRA to the ILAC MRA be granted for the following accreditation programs : o Calibration (ISO/IEC 17025) o Testing (ISO/IEC 17025) o Medical Testing (ISO 15189) o Inspection (ISO/IEC 17020)

The recognition of the AFRAC MRA supports regional and international trade by promoting confidence and acceptance of results generated by accredited laboratories, inspection and certification bodies. Technical barriers to trade (TBTs) such as re-testing, re-inspection or re-certification of products/services each time they enter a new economy will thus be reduced if not eliminated. This international recognition of the AFRAC MRA is a key milestone enabling full integration of Africa into the world trading system as it enhances regional and global market access, hence an enabler to accelerating economic growth within the continent. For the fulfilment of Africa’s aspirations as provided for in the Agenda 2063, this international recognition will enable inclusive growth and sustainable development through positioning of Africa as an influential global player and partner on conformity assessment and accreditation. In line with AFRAC’s mission the recognition also enhances the protection of the health and safety of the publ ic and the environment

Some of the AFRAC Peer Evaluators & ILAC Evaluators during the Evaluation of AFRAC by ILAC and IAF

AFRAC MRA Council Meeting

This recognition couldn’t have come at a more opportune time than now when more than forty African Countries signed a historic trade agreement ‘The African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) paving way for a liberalised market for goods and services across the continent hence the need for recognised conformity assessment activities to build the confidence and trust on the goods and services being traded across the continent

Part of the AFRAC Team at the last Joint ILAC/IAF General Assembly

AFRAC Chair Eng. Araya giving his remarks at the last Joint ILAC/IAF General Assembly

AFRAC Arrangement Members are independent accreditation bodies appointed or recognized by the government of the Member State or sub-regional block and legally established and operating in the African region and who have successfully been evaluated by AFRAC. These are EGAC-Egypt, ENAO-Ethiopia, KENAS-Kenya, SADCAS-Botswana (representing 13 countries in southern Africa), SANAS-South Africa and TUNAC – Tunisia.

AFRAC will be celebrating this milestone at the upcoming General Assembly Meetings planned to happen in Mauritius, in September 2018. Come join us as we celebrate this important milestone not only for AFRAC but for Africa.

“AFRAC - Confidence & Trust”

Susanah M-Ochieng - AFRAC MCC Convenor, KENAS

WORLD ACCREDITATION DAY CELEBRATIONS Ethiopia Ethiopian National Accreditation Office had celebrated World Accreditation Day for the 8th time. The 2018 celebration with theme, “Accreditation: Delivering a safer world” was celebrated at Inter-Continental Hotel in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, with panel discussion and 91 attendants. Invited guests from Ministry of Labour and Social Affairs, and Ethiopian Food, Medicine and Health Care Administration and Health Care gave presentation on the theme. We expect that the product that we buy are safe to use, the food we eat are free from contaminants, the air we breathe should be free from harmful pollutants, large scale infrastructure should be safe to use, our daily source of energy should be accessible without risk of injury or harm, business have responsibility to ensure that employees are able to enjoy freedom from injury or diseases and to provide for a sense of mental, physical and social wellbeing. Therefore, accreditation has a crucial role in maintaining the above expectations. One of the invited guests from Ethiopian Food, Medicine and Health Care Administration and Health Care of Ethiopia, Mr.Seyoum Wolde in his presentation on Food Safety Control, discussed how effective food control is undermined by the existence of fragmented legislation, multiple jurisdictions, weaknesses in surveillance, monitoring and enforcement, reactive rather than proactive and sharing responsibility for food control between different agencies or ministries in most countries. The second topic was on Ethiopian Occupational Health and Safety which was presented by Mr. Mesfin Ylma from the Ministry of Labour and Social Affairs. He addressed various issues in the presentation including the current rapid economic development which has brought changes in workplaces in Ethiopia. The organization of occupational health and safety services is not yet resilient enough

to handle the growing demands for workers' health in the context of industrialization.

June 9, 2018 Accreditation day celebration at Intercontinental Hotel, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia

Panel Discussion on June 9, 2018 World accreditation day at Intercontinental Hotel,Addis Ababa, Ethiopia

The construction, manufacturing, and road infrastructure sectors are growing in Ethiopia and is currently engaging many people in both public and private sectors. The workforces are exposed to various hazards in the workplace including dust and occupational noise of various types in manufacturing sectors and chemical exposures in various industries. Injury in both the agriculture and the manufacturing sectors is another workplace hazard commonly observed in the country. There is a high level of workplace injuries that often leads to an extended loss of productive working days. Occupational safety and health services were found to be inadequately organized. There is limited practice in exposure assessment and monitoring. The participants also discussed how accreditation and conformity assessment bodies play a crucial in occupational health and safety.

Therefore, accreditation ensures reliable and sustainable testing laboratories, inspection bodies, certification bodies and organization certifying persons and contributes its part to the food safety control and occupational health and safety. Mr. Getnet Tsigemelak, in his presentation stated that in all aspects of our live safe workplaces, safe products, safe transport, safe foods are universally shared. Standards, conformity assessment and accreditation are well established and accepted tools that are used to help deliver a safer

world.

Getnet Tsigemelak - ENAO

Kenya

On the 7th of June, 2018; KENAS held a seminar to mark the World Accreditation Day. Stakeholders from various sectors of the economy participated and engaged in plenary discussions around the theme: Accreditation: Delivering a Safer World. The one day workshop featured an engaging and interactive session with presentations delivered by various speakers on the value and contribution of accreditation as an enabler towards the realization of the Big Four Agenda. Some of the areas covered by presenters included safe transport, safety in the workplace and construction; safe food, water and products, safety in health facilities – control and prevention of infections and safety in general to all aspects of our lives. Coming closer home, Kenya has been battling illicit products that are considered unsafe for human consumption but have been cited in the market. A myriad of problems have occurred with regards to unsafe bottled drinking water, expired drugs being sold, collapsed buildings, unsafe passenger service vehicle (PSV) on our roads and so much more, making it clear that more needs to be done to protect consumers. To close this gap, it is expected that vital considerations by governments, regulators and businesses that aim at keeping people safer in their work, their domestic life, their journeys and all other parts of their lives will be put into place. Giving his keynote address, the PS, State Department of Trade under the Ministry of Industry, Trade and Cooperatives, Dr. Chris Kiptoo stated that the theme is timely as it attempts to raise global awareness on the importance of Accreditation in ensuring a safer world in all aspects of human life.

Mr. Hassan Hache, KENAS Board member congratulated the KENAS management for the well planned seminar. He noted that the theme for this year’s World Accreditation Day had come at a crucial time when Kenya is fighting illicit products in the market. He urged most businesses to take up accreditation in order to demonstrate compliance with best practice by implementing health and safety management systems. The overall reaction to this would include an improved reputation and increase opportunities for these new businesses whilst demonstrating commitment with legal obligations. Safety in medical services With regards to medical safety where it concerns infection and prevention controls, the speaker Shadrack Mutisya, Medical Laboratory Specialist at FHI 360 mentioned that accreditation guarantees IPC conformity, competence, and integration into routine medical staff practises. Safety in transport The CEO of Kenya Association of Bus Manufacturers, an inspection body which is accredited by KENAS gave a presentation on the milestones made in ensuring that Passenger Bus Vehicles are safe for Kenyans. He said that safety in Kenya’s transport sector will be assured if all manufactured passenger vehicles conform to the Ks372 2014 standard. Safety in the workplace Mr. Paul Sammy, the Quality Health & Safety Manager SGS, a KENAS accredited certification body, also gave a presentation with regard to work environment safety. He stated that accreditation assures safety of workers and improved business by reducing chances of workplace incidents and accidents. With a greater industry awareness of legal requirements it means that there will be reduced chances of committing occupational, health and safety offences. Elizabeth Muema - KENAS

Dr. Chris Kiptoo, PS State Department for Trade opens the World Accreditation Day

2018 Seminar

KENAS Board Member, Hassan Hache giving the Board remarks during the World Accreditation Day, 2018 seminar.

KENAS CEO, Martin Chesire gives Chief Guest Dr. Chris Kiptoo & Mr. Eddy Njoroge a run through of infographics that show the relationship between accreditation and the Big 4 agenda

SADC

SADC Member States Celebrate World Accreditation Day ANGOLA

To celebrate the 2018 World Accreditation Day, the Angolan Institute of Accreditation held a workshop at Afonso Van-Dúnem Mbinda, Edifício Kilamba, Marginal de Luanda on 14 June 2018 which was officially welcomed by the Minister of Industry and opened by the Minister of State and Chief of Staff of the President of the Republic of Angola.

Executive members of government Delegates at the Workshop (photo on the right)

The workshop was also an opportunity to present the importance and benefits of accredited inspection body activities and the necessity to have a national regulation aligned with the international standard requirements. Due to the attendance of various stakeholders and local media, the workshop was a success in promoting the theme of the year “Accreditation – Delivering a Safer World”.

BOTSWANA

The 2018 World Accreditation Day (WAD) was successfully commemorated on 8 June 2018 at the Maun Lodge, in the north of Botswana. Botswana held a half day conference which was followed by a tour of exhibition stalls. The WAD commemoration was graced by the presence of the North West Council Secretary, Batawana Kgosikgolo-Kgosi Keatile Moremi and Mr Ramogapi Gaborekwe, the Maun District Commissioner who both presented the welcome remarks. The opening remark was made by Mrs Mpho H. Ntshese, the Acting Director of Industrial Affairs, Ministry of Investment, Trade and Industry. SADCAS was represented at the WAD commemoration by Ms Jeanne Françoise Ranorovelo, the Technical Manager

DEMOCRATIC REPUBLIC OF CONGO

The 2018 World Accreditation Day (WAD) was commemorated in Kinshasa, Democratic Republic of Congo by a half-day meeting followed by visits of laboratories and a tour of exhibition stalls. The WAD commemoration was graced by Mr Jean Lucien Bussa Togba , the Minister of State, Ministry of Foreign Trade who made the opening remarks followed by eight presentations.

Delegates at the conference

The North West Council Secretary, Batawana Kgosikgolo-Kgosi Keatile Moremi

Photos taken during the meeting and exhibition

The closing remarks were made by Mr Lubiba Mampuya, the Head of Laboratories Department, Office Congolais de Contrôle (OCC). This was followed by the visit of OCC Microbiology Laboratory and the Mobile laboratory for Environmental Control and a tour of the different stands prepared by the industrial sector.

MADAGASCAR

To commemorate the 2018 World Accreditation Day (WAD), on behalf of the Ministry of Trade and Consumption, the National Accreditation Focal Points published on 6 June 2018, articles on accreditation in a local newspaper for the “Chambre de Commerce et d’Industrie d’Antananarivo”; in the “Expansion Magazine” for the “Syndicat des Industries de Madagascar” and on the “Codex Alimentarius Madagascar” website for which the links to the publications in the local newspaper and the website were provided as follows:

- http://codex-mada.org/index.php/fr/blog-codex/107-journee-mondiale-de-l-accreditation-2018

- http://www.cci.mg/rp/Newsletter-06-06-2018.pdf In addition, Madagascar will arrange a conference in October 2018 during which the WAD commemoration will be jointly celebrated with the World Standards Day.

SEYCHELLES

Seychelles celebrated the 2018 World Accreditation Day (WAD) on 15 June 2018 during which a one-day workshop was held at Seychelles Bureau of Standards (SBS) and a press release was prepared and sent to local media for awareness. The welcome remark was presented by Mrs Sreekala Nair, the Deputy Chief Executive Officer of SBS and the workshop was officially opened by Mr Roger Toussaint, the Principal Secretary of the Department of Industry and Entrepreneurship Development (which is under the Vice- President Office) during which he highlighted the Importance of accreditation and the role and importance of Conformity Assessment Bodies and Accreditation bodies in the accreditation process. This was followed by three presentations

Mr Roger Toussaint, the Principal Secretary of the Department of Industry and Entrepreneurship Development and Delegates at the Workshop

The workshop was attended by various stakeholders from Fish processing sector, Government laboratories (Ministry of Health, Agriculture, Environment, National Institute for Science, Technology and Innovation), Private laboratories (Indian Ocean Tuna, Seychelles Breweries, Ortus, Socomep), Medias and SBS staff. It ended with the presentation of certificates to SBS technical signatories and team leaders as a recognition of their contribution in achieving and maintaining accreditation and a visit of Seychelles Bureau of Standards testing and calibration laboratories.

SWAZILAND The 2018 World Accreditation Day (WAD) was successfully celebrated on 14 June 2018 by a half day workshop held at the City Court Guest House and was attended by the Acting Principal Secretary, the Under Secretary in the Ministry of Tourism and Environment and representatives of regulators from different ministries and regulatory agencies, Directorates, senior officials, laboratory and inspection bodies personnel, senior officials from Swaziland Standards Authority and local medias. The welcome remark was presented by Ms Georgina Shabangu, Senior Quality Systems Officer in the Regulatory Quality Infrastructure and Development Department and the workshop was officially opened by Mr Robert Dlamini, the Acting Principal Secretary. During the workshop Mrs Sybil Dlamini, the National Accreditation Focal Point (NAFP) presented the Role of Accreditation in delivering a Safer World and other presenters from the Ministry of Health (Environmental Health Department); Ministry of Tourism and Environment (Swaziland Environmental Authority); Ministry of Commerce, Industry and Trade (Weights and Measures Department); and Ministry of Labour and Social Security (Occupational Health and Safety Department) respectively made presentations related to the theme of the year.

Workshop delegates (Photo on the left) and Ms Phindile Dlamini, 2nd NAFP – Swaziland and Mr

Robert Dlamini, the Acting Principal Secretary (Photo on the right)

Jeanne Françoise Ranorovelo - SADCAS

Nigeria

Nigeria National Accreditation Service, NiNAS, joined the world to celebrate World Accreditation Day for the second time since the inception of the organization in 2015. World Accreditation Day was jointly established by the International Accreditation Forum (IAF) and the International Laboratory Accreditation Cooperation (ILAC), to raise awareness of the importance of accreditation. This year’s event was marked on 08 June 2018 with the theme ‘Accreditation: delivering a safer world’. The global community on accreditation has identified that what is expected of a safe workplace, safe product, safe transport, safe food, in fact all aspects of our lives is universally shared. Statistics, however, show that the expectation is not being matched by the reality. Closing this gap is a vital consideration for government, regulators and businesses, aiming to keep people safer in their work, their domestic life, their journeys and all other parts of their lives. It is against this backdrop that, NiNAS used the event to bring all stakeholders together to discuss how accreditation could be used as a tool to protect citizens of Nigeria and the West African region and their investment by bringing sanity into the delivery of goods and services through application of standards and accreditation. In attendance were some members of NiNAS Board (BOT, BOD, AAC), the European Union representative, Nadia Cannata, UNIDO-NQIP Project Manager, Dr. Raymond Tavares, the UNIDO Representative in Nigeria, Jean Bakole, UNIDO-NQIP Chief Technical Adviser, Dr. Shaukat Hussain, NQIP staff, the Press, all NiNAS staff, representatives from the West Africa Quality System Programme, the representative from Ministry of Budget and National Planning, and representatives from the organized private sector including the President of Manufacturers Association of Nigeria, Dr. Frank Jacobs Udemba.

In her key note address, Ms. Cannata of the EU Delegation to Nigeria & ECOWAS stated that quality infrastructure is a system with all component parts equally essential for efficient functioning. Ms. Cannata noted that, the national quality infrastructure is “an opportunity and not a burden… [More has to be done to] protect the consumers.” On his part, Mr. Jean Bakole, UNIDO Representative to ECOWAS and Regional Director, Nigeria Regional Office Hub, stated that in Delivering a Safer World, “it is critical that consumers have confidence in safety, security, and authenticity of food and water they consume”. This confidence according to him is gained through application of common food safety management systems, supported by credible testing and inspection regimes. Mr. Bakole went further to explain that, “NINAS accreditation service provides excellent opportunity to promote accreditation to businesses, government and regulators, in several ways to help deliver a safer world. Raw materials, products, processes, services, management systems, and persons can be evaluated against a standard, code of practice, or regulatory requirements by accredited testing, and calibration laboratories, inspections bodies, and certification bodies. We have a collective responsibility, so if the laboratory is not accredited, do not accept the test results.” NiNAS CEO, Mr. Celestine Okanya elaborated the usefulness of NiNAS in the entire process of accreditation delivering a safer world. According to him, “NiNAS is using this medium to affirm our commitment to using accreditation as a tool to ensure safety, health, economic growth of our people while ensuring that our environment is protected.” The Chairman of the Board of Trustees, Dr. Dahiru Adamu, also laid emphasis on the need for the Nigerian government to take possession of the quality infrastructure programme and commit to it in order to sustain the expected benefits from the NQIP to the Nigerian economy. NQIP is available to ensure that Nigerian products meet the international standards. He charged government to produce the enabling environment for NQI because this will enhance job creation in the country. The BOT chairman finally encouraged Nigerians to embrace the accreditation service which NiNAS provide to the country. The discussion provided an opportunity for the UNIDO-NQIP Project Manager, Mr. Raymond Tavares said that NiNAS was no longer a concept but a reality which is a very important milestone for the country. He used the occasion to call for commitment from all relevant institutions and stakeholders to support NiNAS’ progress because of its great benefit the Nigerian economy. NiNAS has obtained Full membership of AFRAC and Associate membership of ILAC. The event also saw the inauguration of the NiNAS new office premise at Asokoro, Abuja.

Tamunobubelebara Emmanuel – NiNAS

South Africa

South African National Accreditation Day (SANAS) celebrated World Accreditation Day (WAD) at the launch of their new office. WAD is the event that is celebrated annually. It is a global initiative, jointly established by the International Accreditation Forum (IAF) and the International Accreditation Cooperation (ILAC), to raise awareness of the importance of accreditation. The theme for 2018 was, Accreditation Delivering A Safer World and the focus was on how accreditation delivers a safer world with the expectation of safe workplaces, safe products, safe transport, safe food, in fact all aspects of our lives. The Minister of Trade and Industry (the dti), Dr. Rob Davies was the keynote speaker at the World Accreditation Day celebration at SANAS offices in Pretoria. The event also marked the opening of the new SANAS offices in Equestria, east of Pretoria. Minister Davies reference that the South African government recognised the increasingly instrumental role that quality standards play in international trade, hence its focus on strengthening the country’s technical support institutions. “Since we launched the Industrial Policy Action Plan (IPAP) nearly a decade ago, we have deliberately and with strategic foresight tried to foreground the work of technical infrastructure institutions. This is due to the fact that in a variety of ways, standards and adherence to standards, the ability to write your own standards and the ability to implement quality assurance measures, have increasingly become critical elements of international trade,” said Minister.

He added that as an important player in global trade, South Africa cannot afford to be found imperfect regarding standards as there is an increasing demand in the international market for high standards.“If we cannot write our own standards and establish testing facilities that enable us to demonstrate that our products meet certain standards, we will become prey to other people’s institutions, rules and agendas. We need to be very much aware that the issues of standards are used as a non-tariff barrier, a way of keeping products out of other markets,’’ explained Dr Davies. He also emphasized that the country’s four technical support bodies, namely SANAS, National Regulator for Compulsory Specifications (NRCS), South African Bureau of Standards (SABS) and National Metrology Institute of South Africa (NMISA) have a critical role to play in ensuring that the country meets high quality international standards. “The important role played by these four institutions is to lock in South African products into export markets and to lock out unsafe products which are harmful to our people and create unfair competition to local manufacturers and producers who work hard to meet our standards,” said Dr Davies. He added that South Africa was facing a challenge of import products that are coming into the country not meeting the local standards and are competing with locally-produced products in price but not in quality. Minister highlighted that the the dti together with relevant authorities in South Africa need to work together in dealing with sub-standard products as some of them cause harm to our people, such as the paraffin stoves. Nombongo Ngobe – SANAS

Minister of Trade and Industry (South Africa): Dr.

Rob Davies during his key note speech during

the World Accreditation Day

The Minister, Dr Rob Davies cutting the ribbon to mark the opening of the new SANAS offices, as SANAS Board of Directors: Chairperson Mr Prags Govender, and Chief Executive Officer, Mr Ron Josias witness the special occasion.

Memoires of the AFRAC ISO/IEC 17011:2017 Training It was a pleasant flight to Kenya just as we get closer over Tanzania the famous Kilimanjaro clothed with ice. Then we landed in KENYA, and all I could hear was Jumbo (hello) and Karibu (welcome). We were in Nairobi to participate in ISO/IEC 17011:2017 training held at EKA Hotel in Kenya from 24 to 26 June 2018 and hosted by KENAS (Kenya Accreditation Service). The training was well attended and Ms Yolanda Vinnicombe of AFRAC Secretariat was on ground to welcome all the participants.

ISO/IEC 17011: AFRAC Evaluator training was conducted by Ms. Barbara Belzer, NVLAP, USA, a veteran peer evaluator. She joined NVLAP (National Voluntary Laboratory Accreditation Program) as a Program Manager for the Calibration Laboratories Accreditation Program in 2002. She has performed both lead and technical assessments for NVLAP since 1999 and performs both lead and technical peer evaluations for the Asia Pacific Laboratory Accreditation Cooperation (APLAC) Mutual Recognition Arrangement and the Inter American Accreditation Cooperation (IAAC) Multi-Lateral Agreement. She also serves as a peer

evaluator at the regional level for the International Laboratory Accreditation Cooperation (ILAC).

Training lay out covered overview of the revision process, structure of the standard, CASCO Common Elements, all clauses of the standard, risk, and general discussion. Main purpose of training was to review, discuss evaluation techniques and changes in ISO /IEC 17011. In her presentation she highlighted that Accreditation bodies need to note the deleted terms such as accreditation certificate, lead assessor (replaced by team leader) and surveillance. She also addressed new terms and definitions, this allowed a good debate amongst peer evaluators and also brough to the front burner some points to note for AFRAC documents and ensure consistency in the region. This training was designed to highlight the requirements of the new edition of ISO/ IEC 17011.

In addition to this Mr Moslem Barrak took participants through lessons learned from the IAF & ILAC evaluation of AFRAC. This include document review, peer evaluation program, opening /closing meetings, duties of the peer evaluation team members, witnessing rules, evaluation of performance of AFRAC peer evaluators, AFRAC joint peer evaluation with other regions and writing of findings. Some AFRAC documents were referred to as well including AFRAC M001&ILAC/IAF A2, Annex 2 B 3.1.5, IAF MD 20:2016 Generic Competence for AB Assessors, and AFRAC M002

The objective of this document is to ensure the consistent and harmonized application of ISO/IEC 17011 for defining the generic competence for assessors. The 2012 Accreditation Body Assessor Job Task Analysis was created to achieve this objective. F027 AFRAC Evaluation Template, opening and closing meeting F018, AFRAC GD002 Guidance document for peer evaluators and Witnessing form F014 were all discussed.

At the end of the training the participants had a taste of Kenya hospitality. It was indeed awesome moments. We thank PTB for funding the training and KENAS for being the perfect host.

Movha Hellen Morokane – SANAS

Delegates in the ISO/IEC 17011:2017 peer evaluators workshop

AFRAC Peer Evaluators Training on 17025:2017

The workshop on the newly published ISO/IEC 17025:2017 was held from the 22nd to the 23rd of June 2018 at the EKA hotel in Nairobi, Kenya. The workshop preceded the AFRAC Mid-year review meetings hosted by the Kenya Accreditation Service (KENAS) that were held from the 27th to 29th June 2018. A total of 17 delegates drawn from Qualified/Trainee AFRAC Peer Evaluators and staff of the Kenya Accreditation Service (KENAS) attended the workshop. The workshop was facilitated by Mr. Moslem Barrak of Arab Accreditation Cooperation (ARAC) and a Lead Evaluator of AFRAC

The main objectives of the workshop were to;

• Highlight the new and reviewed requirements in the newest version of ISO/IEC 17025.

• Discuss underlying concepts with the goal of enabling participants to have a better understanding of the recent changes.

• Assist AFRAC Peer Evaluators in evaluating laboratories in a harmonized way within the AFRAC region. The key areas highlighted included;

• Overview and rationale of changes

• Risk-based approach

• Decision rule

• Management system Options A and B

• Subcontracting

• Calibration certificates without results/Measurement uncertainty i.e. Conformity Certificates

• Control of data especially on off-site managed, laboratory information management systems (LIMS)

• Sampling as a stand-alone activity

The course was presented using Power point presentations, handouts and Practical group exercises and discussions. Delegates were awarded certificates of attendance

Felista Nyakoe - KENAS

Delegates in the ISO/IEC 17025:2017 peer

evaluators workshop

Mr Moslem Barrak of Arab Accreditation Cooperation (ARAC)

taking the AFRAC Peer and trainee evaluators through the

new ISO/IEC 17025:2017

2018 AFRAC Mid-year Meetings

AFRAC held its 2018 AFRAC Mid-year meetings from 27 – 29 June 2018 in Nairobi, Kenya. The meetings were hosted by the Kenya Accreditation Service (KENAS) an AFRAC Arrangement Member. The meetings included meetings of the Marketing and Communication Committee, Technical Committee, Mutual Recognition Arrangement (MRA) Committee and Council and the Executive Committee. Ahead of the meetings, training was provided to the AFRAC Peer Evaluators and the AFRAC MRA Committee and Council members on two critical international standards which were published on 30 November 2017, i.e. ISO/IEC 17025:2017” General Requirements for the competence of testing and calibration laboratories” and ISO/IEC 17011:2017” General requirements for accreditation bodies accrediting conformity assessment bodies”. The ISO/IEC 17025:2017 training was facilitated by Mr Moslem Barrak (ARAC Secretariat and AFRAC Peer Evaluator) and the ISO/IEC 17011:2017 training was conducted by Mrs Barbara Belzer (Program Manager at National Voluntary Laboratory Accreditation Program and ILAC Peer Evaluator). Training was aimed at ensuring that the peer evaluators and MRA Committee and Council Members were knowledgeable on the revised standards.

Participants of the ISO/IEC 17025:2017 Training Participants of the ISO/IEC 17011:2017 Training

The Technical Committee was also held on 27 June 2018 where a number of issues were addressed during the meeting including the Proficiency testing programs participation in member states, reviewing of the feedback on the committees 2017/18 work plans, resolutions action items, as well as reviewing of the ILAC and IAF meeting recommendations as presented by Mr Mpho Phaloane based on his attendance at the ILAC and IAF meetings for the AFRAC TC’s actioning. The TC resolved to develop a Medical Sub-committee in order to assist the TC with their activities. The Marketing and Communication Committee meeting was held in the morning of 28 June 2018, the committee reviewed implementation of its 2017/18 work plan, the importance of the submission of case studies to the www.publicsectorassurance.org website was highlighted and members were encouraged to get their CABs to submit case studies. The public sector assurance website helps illustrate the value of conformity assessment, case studies from around the world are submitted in key policy areas to show how different tools help government officials and regulators deliver results. The celebration of AFRAC’s achievement of signatory status to the ILAC and IAF MRA was discussed and a plan for the celebration which is due to take place during the AFRAC General Assembly meeting in September 2018 was drafted. The committee also looked at the statistics for the AFRAC social media pages and recommended that all AFRAC Members and stakeholders follow AFRAC on its Facebook and Twitter pages. The MRA Council, which are the decision-makers for AFRAC Arrangement Members, confirmed SANAS’ continued status as an AFRAC Arrangement member for the scopes of Calibration, Testing, Medical Testing, Inspection and Certification (QMS and EMS). In addition, SANAS was granted AFRAC MRA signatory status for Food Safety Management System (FSMS) to ISO/IEC 17021-1:2015 and ISO/TS 22003:2013. This came after SANAS’ 4 yearly re-evaluation by AFRAC in August 2017. One of the roles of the AFRAC MRA Committee is to decide on the adoption of the ILAC and IAF resolutions / documents. Such adopted resolutions / documents then become applicable to all the AFRAC Accreditation Body members and their accredited facilities. The following ILAC and IAF Resolutions / published documents were adopted, and AFRAC Members therefore will need to ensure its implementation: ILAC Resolutions:

- ILAC Resolution GA 21.18 - JGA Vancouver Resolution 2 - Implementation of transition to ISO/IEC 17011:2017

IAF Resolutions:

- IAF Resolution 2017-13 Transitional arrangements for the ISO 9001:2015 and ISO 14001:2015. Communique in this regard is to be circulated by the AB’s to all CB’s.

− IAF Resolution 2017-16 Transitional arrangements for the transition of ISO 22000:2005 to ISO 22000:2018. - IAF Resolution 2017-17 Transitional arrangements for the revision of ISO/IEC TS 17021-3:2013 to ISO/IEC 17021-3:2017.

ILAC and IAF publications:

- ILAC G27:06/2017 Guidance on measurements performed as part of an inspection process - IAF MD 1:2018 IAF Mandatory Document for the Audit and Certification of a Management System Operated by a Multi-Site

Organization - IAF MD 2:2017 IAF Mandatory Document for the Transfer of Accredited Certification of Management Systems - IAF MD 21:2018 Requirements for the Migration to ISO 45001:2018 from OHSAS 18001:2007 - IAF MD 22:2018 Application of ISO/IEC 17021-1 for the Certification of Occupational Health and Safety Management

Systems (OH&SMS) - IAF MD 23:2018 Control of Entities Operating on Behalf of Accredited Management Systems Certification Bodies For more information on these Resolutions and Documents, please access the IAF website at www.iaf.nu or the ILAC website at

www.ilac.org .

AFRAC EXCO Members during the meeting

The AFRAC General Assembly meetings are due to take place from 24 – 28 September 2018 in Port Louis, Mauritius. At these meetings, AFRAC will be celebrating its recognition status as a Regional Accreditation Cooperation, as confirmed by ILAC and IAF in May 2018, for the scopes of Calibration, Testing, Medical Testing, Inspection and Certification (QMS and EMS). AFRAC will be submitting an application to IAF to extend its scope under the IAF MLA to include Certification: FSMS. AFRAC is currently also working on extending its MRA scopes to include Proficiency Testing (PT), Reference Material Producers (RMP), Product Certification, Persons Certification and Greenhouse Gas (GHG). Fikile Skosana -SANAS

Building County Wide Capacity for Implementation of ISO/IEC 17025:2017

ISO/IEC 17025:2017, the international standard for Laboratory Quality Management, has been updated. With the publication of these new requirements, comes the need for laboratories and accreditation bodies to migrate to the implementation of the new standard, as well as offer relevant accreditation services.

An imperative for the successful migration from one version of a standard to a newer version is the need to train interested parties on the requirements of the new standard either for the purposes of implementing it in their laboratories, providing mentorship to laboratories that are implementing the standard, building the capacity to successfully assess laboratories against this standard or

to obtain and maintain competence on the new standard.

Towards this end, UNIDO provided training to a total of fifty-five laboratories and ten training centres spread across different geo-political zones in Nigeria, and NiNAS staff. Some of the trainees are also NiNAS Lead and Technical Assessors. The training was held in two centres: Abuja, to address needs of institutions in the Northern part of the country (Twenty-six laboratories and four training centres); and Lagos, to address needs of institutions in the southern part of the country (Twenty-nine laboratories and six training centers). The beneficiaries of the training were pooled from the public and private sector laboratories that are either accredited or are implementing ISO/IEC 17025:2005 and NiNAS that will be offering ISO/IEC 17025 accreditation scheme.

The trainings were organized within the purview of the European Union funded National Quality Infrastructure Project in Nigeria (NQIP), implemented by the United Nations Industrial Development Organization (UNIDO). Five-day sessions took place in Lagos between 30 April and 04 May, 2018, while the Abuja session took place between 07 - 11 May 2018. The training was facilitated by Dr. Eric T. P. Sze of HKV Academy. The technical course was aimed at laboratory personnel such as quality managers who are responsible for the development and implementation of quality control procedures in the laboratory and included exercises on the difference between both versions of ISO/IEC 17025, the fundamentals of auditing, and Train the Trainer (ToT).

In addition, the aim of developing national trainers for training centres on this new ISO/IEC 17025 standard for the sustainability of quality infrastructure was achieved. This also afforded NiNAS assessors the required advantage of performing assessments for the latest version of the international standard.

With this pool of trained personnel, Nigeria is poised to meet the ILAC transition dateline of November 2020 and AFRAC transition dateline of November 2019 for the ISO/IEC 17025: 2017 standard.

Lawrena Okoro – NiNAS

KENAS urges accredited certification bodies to ensure organizations certified to ISO 9001 and ISO 14001 have transitioned before September 15th, 2018 deadline Martin Chesire met with the three Certification Bodies operating in Kenya namely: SGS, Bureau Veritas & Kenya Bureau of Standards to review the status of transition to the 2015 edition of ISO 9001 (quality) and ISO 14001 (environmental) management system standards. Mr. Chesire urged the Certification bodies to issue notice of expiration of certification to any organization certified to the older versions of the two standards that will not have transitioned by 15th September 2018 deadline. The meeting was follow-up on the implementation of the joint directive issued by the International Organization for Standardization (ISO) and International Accreditation Forum (IAF) in September 2017 to mark the one year reminder notice to all certified organization. This means that each certified entity must work with their certification body to ensure that all elements of the certification process have been completed, from re-certification audits to the technical review, certification decision and issuance of

the certificate by the deadline.

Mr. Chesire observed that over 40% of certified organization had not transition by end of April this year. In other words, failure by these organization to achieve re-certification to the 2015 edition of the standard by the deadline means that their certification and any claim thereof of continued certification will no longer be valid. Mr. Chesire also noted that KENAS as a signatory and a full member of the International Accreditation Forum (IAF) is obligated to ensure that only valid certifications are used in the Kenyan market.

Elizabeth Muema - KENAS

2018 AFRAC Meetings

Date

Activity Country

9 June 2018 World Accreditation Day Worldwide

22 – 26 June 2018 AFRAC ISO/IEC 17025:2017 and ISO/IEC 17011:2017 Training

Nairobi, Kenya

22 – 29 June 2018 AFRAC Mid-year meetings

Nairobi, Kenya

24 – 28 September 2018 9TH AFRAC General Assembly Meetings Balaclava Fort, Mauritius

AFRAC Membership

Published by:

The AFRAC Marketing and Communications Committee Secretariat

Libertas Office Park, Cnr Libertas and Highway Streets, Equestria, Pretoria, 0184

Tel: +2712 740 8537

Email: fikiles@sanas.co.za

Website: www.intra-afrac.org / www.intra-afrac.com

Editor: Mrs Lawrena Okoro

Layout and Design: Ms Fikile Skosana

Connect with us on social media:

@African Accreditation Cooperation

AFRAC_Official

AFRAC (African Accreditation Cooperation)