World Accreditation Day Senegal: UNIDO reaffirms its support to West African countries

Mr. Christophe Yvetot | UNIDO Representative for Senegal, Cape Verde, Gambia, Guinea Bissau and Mauritania, reiterated this during a teleconference organized by the Senegalese Association for Standardization, under the high patronage of the Senegalese Minister in charge of Industry and the WAEMU Resident Representative in Senegal.

Read his speech below:

Mr. Representative of the Minister of Industrial Development and Small and Medium-Sized Industries;
Madam Resident Representative of the WAEMU Commission in Senegal;
Ladies and Gentlemen Administrators and members of the SOAC of Senegal;
Mr. President of the West African Accreditation System (SOAC);
Mr. Director General of the SOAC;
Mr. Director General of the Senegalese Standards Association (ASN), 
Ladies and Gentlemen, the first heads of Conformity Assessment Bodies (CABs): laboratories, certification bodies and inspection bodies,
Ladies and Gentlemen, Business Leaders, Economic Operators, Regulators, Consumers, Traders, Men and Women of the Media,

Like the international community, Senegal is celebrating World Accreditation Day on 9 June 2020. This event is celebrated every year, jointly by the International Laboratory Accreditation Cooperation (ILAC) and the International Accreditation Forum (IAF).
This year's theme, "Accreditation improves food safety" is timely and reinforces the findings already made by the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) and the World Health Organization (WHO) on the impact of foodborne diseases on humans.

Ladies and Gentlemen,

In the context of various health crises that the world has experienced in recent years and the one relating to COVID-19 that we are currently experiencing, there is no longer any doubt about the role of accreditation in protecting the health and safety of populations.
Indeed, with the various barrier measures taken in all the countries of the world where this pandemic has spread, the question of the quality of masks such as hydro-alcoholic gels and solutions has really arisen. Consequently, the imperative to reassure populations through the proven quality of the goods and services offered to them to protect and preserve them becomes an obligation. This will necessarily involve the formal recognition of the technical competence of Conformity Assessment Bodies (CABs), in particular testing and calibration laboratories, inspection bodies and certification bodies (products, systems, people) through accreditation.  
Today, we are seeing the emergence of several pathologies (cardiovascular diseases, hypertension, diabetes, etc.) that spare no age and no social category and which, on closer inspection, are strongly correlated with poor nutrition.
To remedy this, it is becoming urgent to make a firm commitment to the quality culture, which is framed by a functional and regionally and internationally recognized quality infrastructure.

Ladies and Gentlemen, dear guests
You will allow me to salute here the commitment of the Senegalese authorities on the promotion of this quality culture through the adoption by decree 2017-461 of the National Quality Policy which was elaborated with the support of the West African Quality System Programme financed by the European Union and executed by UNIDO. Also, it is pleased to point out that Senegal registers 8 accredited laboratories in various fields (testing, calibration, biomedical analysis), some of which such as the National Laboratory of Analysis and Control (LANAC) of the Directorate of Internal Trade, the Institute of Food Technology (ITA), the CERES LOCUSTOX Foundation, the Pasteur Institute will largely contribute to the assurance of food safety.
You will also allow me to take this opportunity to salute and congratulate the results of the West African Accreditation System (SOAC), a single accreditation body for all eight WAEMU countries, which now facilitates access to accreditation for CABs established in this Zone. It has currently accredited 18 laboratories. 

I would like to recall that UNIDO is continuing its support for the development of quality and accreditation in the region in general and in Senegal in particular: In the region, through the ECOWAS Competitiveness Programme (WACOMP) whose quality component is implemented by our organization for a budget of €5.5 million financed by the European Union; In Senegal, which has just been chosen as a pilot country to reflect on the development of National Sub-Policies for Laboratory Management, a UNIDO initiative. For this activity, I would like to invite all stakeholders to participate fully. Indeed, any economic development or crisis management project needs to be based on a network of competent laboratories to verify the conformity of products and services and provide elements to assist in decision-making; a National Laboratory Management Policy proposes a global, inclusive and multi-sectoral approach to laboratory management at the country level. Indeed, whatever the technical field, laboratories share several common concerns from the acquisition and maintenance of equipment to the accreditation process. This is why dealing with the issue of laboratories in a global manner is today considered to be one of the most effective techniques for guaranteeing the competence of a State's entire national network.

In conclusion, I would like, on behalf of the Director General of UNIDO, to reiterate our sincere thanks to the Government of the Republic of Senegal and particularly to the Minister of Industrial Development and Small and Medium-Sized Industries, but also to our longstanding partners in the field of quality, namely ECOWAS, WAEMU and the European Union, for their continued confidence in our Institution. We reiterate our commitment to spare no effort to accompany Senegal in the implementation of its various projects and programs for an industrial, inclusive and sustainable development, in accordance with our mandate and in line with Sustainable Development Goal No. 9 "Build a resilient infrastructure, promote sustainable industrialization that benefits all and encourage innovation".
Thank you for your kind attention"

 

(Editor's note: The message was produced in French, so any imperfections in the English translation are the responsibility of the editor and not of the author.)

Wednesday, June 10, 2020 - 20:45

This program is funded by the European Union with the technical support of UNIDO, the implementing Agency

The views expressed in this publication do not necessarily reflect those of the Commision of the European Union

Copyright - 2019 - ECOWAS AGENCY FOR QUALITY

World Accreditation Day Senegal: UNIDO reaffirms its support to West African countries | ECOWAQ

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