Botswana: The Ministry of Trade and Industry of Botswana, in collaboration with the Southern African Development Community Accreditation Service (SADCAS), celebrated World Accreditation Day through a Press Conference and a panel discussion today in Gaborone.
World Accreditation Day (WAD) is a global initiative that was jointly established by the International Accreditation Forum (IAF) and International Laboratory Accreditation Cooperation (ILAC) with a view to raising awareness of the importance and benefits of Accreditation. WAD is celebrated annually on the 9th of June under a designated theme.
This year’s theme is “Accreditation: Supporting the Future of global trade”. The theme focuses on how Accreditation is delivering sustainability in economic development to support the future of global trade.
When giving the key note address, the Acting Deputy Permanent Secretary of Industry in the Ministry, Lesedi Kgotlele, emphasized the importance of Accreditation in delivering sustainable development.
She said the Accreditation provides for competent, reliable and impartial testing and inspection of goods and services produced and used by the industry and the public. This is done through accredited testing and calibration laboratories, certification institutions and inspection bodies.
The commemoration was concluded by a panel discussion comprising representatives from the Botswana Bureau of Standards (BOBS), Southern African Development Community Accreditation Services (SADCAS), Ministry of Health-Department of Health Laboratory Services, Botswana Meat Commission (BMC)-Business Partner Laboratory.
The discussion centred around the role of conformity assessment (testing, certification, inspection, calibration) and Accreditation in supporting the future of global trade, as well as current developments in the domestic and international quality infrastructure.
World Accreditation Day (#WAD2023) is a global initiative established by the International Laboratory Accreditation Cooperation (ILAC) and the International Accreditation Forum (IAF) to promote the value of Accreditation. This year’s theme is “Accreditation: Supporting the Future of global trade”.
This theme will demonstrate how accreditation and accredited conformity assessment activities assist in the ongoing restructuring of the global supply chain, which promotes trade normalization. Organizations seek new markets and investment opportunities to establish adjustable and robust supply chains.