GHANA – The American National Standards Institute (ANSI) has recognized the Food and Drugs Authority’s (FDA) Centre for Laboratory Services and Research (CLSR) due to its increased ISO 17025:2017 testing scope.

Through the International Organisation for Standardization (ISO) accreditation and surveillance audits conducted between March 28 2022 and April 4, 2022, ANSI said that FDA’s Laboratory now has the largest ISO accreditation scope in Africa.

As a result of the 2021 ISO accreditation, the FDA has now attained more leverage and international recognition in the testing of regulated products.

According to ANSI, FDA currently has 55 parameters, seven more than the previous 48 parameters. It explained that the seven new parameters comprise of five parameters for the Food Physicochemical laboratory and two for the Pharmaceutical Microbiology laboratory.

“This enviable feat obviously places FDA in a position to meet internationally accepted scientific laboratory practices as it also allows the authority to issue Export Certificates in accordance with Section 131 of the Public Health Act, 2012, (Act 851),” said ANSI.

The statement added that locally manufactured food products that were certified by the FDA would be considered as having met international standards; a game changer in the advancement of the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) protocols.

Mrs. Delese Mimi Darko, the Chief Executive Officer, FDA , attributed the significant achievement to the dedication and tenacity of the staff of the laboratory, and its quality systems and policies that ensured robust testing using international standards.

She, consequently, urged staff to continue to uphold the high standards of the FDA since that was the surest way of achieving major milestones.

The Head of the Laboratory, Mr. Eric Karikari-Boateng in response, recognized the Management of the Authority for their support in entrenching high safety standards in the laboratory, and for the provision of resources to deliver timely and accurate analysis in fulfillment of the Authority’s mandate.

“FDA’s latest feat of becoming the first regulatory body with the largest ISO accreditation scope in Africa is great news for Ghana and the African continent. This is because, the accreditation comes with enormous benefits to industry players.

“It will afford them the opportunity to quality testing services and reliable results for their products prior to registration, which will ultimately boost consumer confidence,” he said.

The American National Standards Institute is a private non-profit organization that oversees the development of voluntary consensus standards for products, services, processes, systems, and personnel in the United States.

Encompassing nearly every industry, the Institute represents the diverse interests of more than 270,000 companies and organizations, and 30 million professionals worldwide.

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