KENYA – The Kenya Accreditation Service (KENAS), the National Accreditation Body mandated by the Government of Kenya to provide accreditation services, has awarded the Kenya Bureau of Standards (KEBS) the prestigious ISO/IEC 17020:2012 accreditation.
The regulator was awarded for maintaining high standards in the inspection of goods and services traded in the country.
“Today, we celebrate not just an accreditation, but the relentless pursuit of excellence by our dedicated team at KEBS Inspection Body.
“This milestone is the result of our collective efforts, tireless dedication, and unwavering commitment to ensuring the highest standards of quality and integrity in our operations,” said Bernard Njiraini, KEBS Managing Director.
According to KENAS Chief Executive Officer Martin Chesire, the accreditation enhances the inspection body’s credibility and reputation.
“This accreditation is a testament to KEBS› unwavering commitment to quality and excellence. By achieving ISO/IEC 17020:2012 accreditation, KEBS Inspection Body demonstrates its technical competence, adherence to good management practices, and its readiness to meet the challenges of an increasingly globalized market,” said Chesire.
This accreditation strengthens KEBS’s ability to ensure the caliber and authenticity of its products and services in a market that is becoming more globalized and complex.
“Securing the ISO 17020 accreditation elevates our business to new heights, providing us with a competitive edge and assuring the quality and genuineness of our operations.
“Our pursuit of excellence reflects our commitment to contributing to the advancement of Kenya and the global community,” added Dr. Jeremiah Kamau Kinyua, Chairman of the National Standards Council.
ISO/IEC 17020:2012 specifies requirements for the competence of bodies performing inspection and for the impartiality and consistency of their inspection activities. It applies to inspection bodies of type A, B or, C, as defined in ISO/IEC 17020:2012, and it applies to any stage of inspection.
The international standard covers a range of activities of inspection bodies which include the examination of materials, products, installations, plants, processes, work procedures, or services; determination of the examined services and products conformity against respective requirements, and the subsequent reporting of results of the activities, performed in the above two steps, to clients and authorities.
It places more emphasis on the capacity of accreditation bodies to control objectivity, conflicts of interest, the body’s technical competence, and inspection services and procedures.
The accreditation equips the certifying organizations with the skills necessary to exercise professional judgment while conducting inspections, particularly when determining whether certain requirements are being met.
The 17020 accreditation certification is a sequential process involving several stages of inspection, which include monitoring, auditing, and approval of the QMS.
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