If the same can probably not be said for some state agencies charged with providing important, often critical services to local consumers, the Guyana National Bureau of Standards (GNBS) would appear to be doing its best to be an exception.
Recently released information on services which the Bureau provided in 2023 pertaining to service provider adherence to standards expected by consumers across the various sectors of the country’s economy suggests that the work of the state-run agency is making a pleasing impact. In a recent release the GNBS said that it executed “several certifications in 2023 its task being to provide assurances to consumers regarding the quality of the goods and services that they consume.” Certification, the agency says in its release, provides “confirmation by a third party that requirements of standards and guidelines are met… based on conformity assessment in which the fulfillment of the requirements is checked before a certificate is granted.”
The role of the GNBS is particularly important in an society where anticipated enhanced service standards is linked to both local and external consumer quality assurance expectations and the GNBS makes no secret of its focus on living up to expectations. Its recent release on its 2023 agenda states that it “certified thirty (30) new companies under its Permit to use the Made in Guyana Certification Mark Programme, Laboratory Certification, the Bed & Breakfast Certification, and the Product Certification Programmes.” Mindful of the stringent quality demands associated with locally produced goods accessing international markets, the GNBS’ release also said that its certification programme was established “to demonstrate that locally manufactured products and services can satisfy available standards and quality requirements thereby providing confidence to their users.”
Seventeen (17) of the entities certified by the GNBS last year are now authorized to parade the Bureau’s Made in Guyana Certification Mark on their products. Among the ‘approved’ products that can now utilize the Mark as part of its product promotion tools are rice, software, beverages, plastic products, wood products and agro-processed products. The service provided by the GNBS notwithstanding, the release says that the absence of testing facilities locally has impeded the pace at which local businesses realize readiness for certification. The entity’s release says, however, that that challenge has been alleviated somewhat with the increased opening of laboratories across Guyana, Accordingly, it is anticipated that more product testing will become available.
According to the release, nine testing laboratories were certified under the Laboratory Certification Programme last year compared with to two (2) in 2022. There are now thirty two certified laboratories in Guyana. Eight of the certified laboratories focus on quality assurance standards in the health sector. Mindful of the quality assurance requirements in the local business sector two local concrete hollow block manufacturers and a local jewelry establishment facility acquired GNBS certification last year. The GNBS certification programme has also turned its attention to the country’s hospitality sector, largely to take account of the increase in visitor arrivals in recent years. Two such certifications were effected last year.
