Kenya Bureau of Standards to license three firms to inspect goods

A Kenya Bureau of Standards office in Kenya. PHOTO | FILE

By ANTHONY KITIMO

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The Kenya Bureau of Standards will replace three pre-export verification of

conformity standards agents at the expiry of their three-year contract on March 31.

In a public notice, the Kenya Bureau of Standards (Kebs) excluded the three — Cotecna, China Certification & Inspection (Group) Inspection Co Ltd and Intertek International — and nominated three others for pre-export verification of conformity (PvoC) agents to undertake assessment in the country of origin for products and vehicles being imported into Kenya. The companies do inspection, sampling, testing, sealing of full-load containers and issuing of necessary Certificate of Conformity (CoC) and Certificate of Roadworthness (CoR).

Kebs managing director Bernard Njiraini said, “Kebs wishes to inform all stakeholders and the public that the current PVoC contracts for general goods expire on March 31. Therefore, the current PVoC service providers will cease operations and will not be accepting any new applications for certification as from April 1.

However, all Requests for Certifications (RFC) received on or before March 31, shall be processed provided the certification decisions is made and a CoC or Non-Conformity Report issued not latest than April 30.”

Mr Njiraini said Kebs will sign a new three-year PVoC contract cycle with the SGS, Bureau Veritas, World Standardissation Certification and Testing Group (Shenzhen) Co Ltd, China Certification & Inspection Group Co. Ltd, TUV Austria Turk and China Hansom Inspection & Certificate Co Ltd.

Kebs said all imports shipped on board from April 1 without a CoC shall be subject to destination inspection upon payment of inspection fee equivalent to 0.8 percent of the approved value subject to a minimum of $265 and a maximum of $2,700 until further notice.

Mr Njiraini, however, said goods from East Africa Community member countries shall continue to be inspected by Quality Inspection Service Japana and any consignment of the same arriving without CoR or CoC shall be subject to destination inspection. According to Kenyan laws, all products or goods before shipment are required to undergo inspections to meet the regulations and quality before are issued with CoC or CoR from the appointed PVoC agents.

In line with the Public Notice jointly issued by KEBS and KRA in 2015, the requirement for inspection and issuance of such certificate of conformity was expanded to cover all imports but goods already certified by KEBS under the Diamond Scheme are accepted based on the Diamond Mark Certification Goods manufactured within the EAC partner states and are cleared in line with the provision of the EAC Standardization, Quality Assurance, Metrology and Testing Act,2006.