Basseterre, St. Kitts, August 04, 2021 (SKNBS): At a sitting of National Assembly, which will be held on August 05, 2021, at 10:00 a.m., the Minister of International Trade, Industry, Commerce, Consumer Affairs and Labour, the Honourable Wendy Phipps, will seek leave to introduce and have read a first time the Bureau of Standards Bill, 2021 also known as the National Standards Act.
This Act is significant because it is the foundation for having a National Quality Infrastructure (NQI). An NQI is a national framework that guides the production of local goods and services based on agreed standards that follow international benchmarks.
As it addresses the NQI, it speaks on matters such as standardization, accreditation, metrology, and conformity assessment (testing, inspection, and certification).
The Act allows for inspection of goods and commodities at the border. It also permits the inspection of establishments that sell goods and commodities in the country. Such inspection may include checking for labels as well as testing of commodities to ensure they conform to certain regulations. The draft Act can be viewed by following the link https://bit.ly/3CfAn5x
