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In an interview on the sidelines of belated World Standards Day commemorations held at a hotel in Bulawayo on Friday, SAZ board chairman Mr Trust Chikohora said this was meant to ensure imported products met international standards.
“We have worked with the Ministry of Industry in trying to come up with a legislation that will allow compulsory testing for quality on selected imported products, which are key for economic development. Research has already been done and we are just waiting for that law to be enacted so that as a country we have our own piece of legislation in that regard,” he said.
“Right now we are involved in testing fuel.”
Mr Chikohora said if promulgated the law will result in imported products that fall in certain categories such as electrical and food industry being tested for quality to ensure they conform to certified international quality standards.
He said quality testing would also bring better quality goods on the domestic market improving consumer welfare as well as facilitating fair competition between local and foreign industries.
Mr Chikohora said the law will not be peculiar to Zimbabwe as a number of regional countries including South Africa, Botswana and Malawi, have it.
In the past few years, companies in the clothing and textile sector have suffered stiff competition following the influx of cheap imported products from Asia.
In a speech read on her behalf to mark the belated celebrations by SAZ director of operations Mr Cyril Siringwani, the association’s director general Mrs Eve Gahadzikwa said international standards were crucial for increasing efficiency.
She said international standards were powerful tools for helping organisations capitalise their potential in the global market place.
“For example, by providing common specifications, international standards enable products, services and technology from different vendors to fit together like pieces in a puzzle. They support interoperability and compatibility, providing a solid base for developing innovations facilitating market access to new products,” she said.
Mrs Gahadzikwa said standards also helped organisations meet their customers’ needs while focusing and optimising company processes.
She said regulators could use international standards as a means to show compliance and as a base for market- and consumer-friendly regulations.
Online Reporter