WAQP Supports Commemoration of World Metrology Day

FOROYAA Newspaper (Serrekunda)

Kebba Camara

3 June 2011

The West African Quality Programme (WAQP) in collaboration of the Weights and Measures Bureau (WMB), under the Ministry of Trade, Industry, Regional Integration and Employment, commemorated World Metrology Day with a series of awareness raising and publicity activities to mark the event. The activities which started with newspaper inserts, radio phoning-in and televison discussions, culminated with a stakeholder information sharing seminar held on Wednesday, 1 June 2011 at the Laico Atlntic Hotel in Banjul. “Measurements in retail trade” was chosen as the national theme.

Speaking at the seminar, Mr. Joseph Ndenn, the National Technical Coordinator WAQP in The Gambia, said the WAQP is a Programme implemented by ECOWAS in the Non-UEMOA countries and Mauritania and that it is funded by the EU and executed by UNIDO.

He said the Programme is a technical assistance with the purpose of strengthening the trade competitiveness of the concerned countries and ensuring their compliance with trade rules and regulations particularly the World Trade Organisation (WTO) Technical Barriers to Trade (TBT) and Sanitary and Phyto Santary (SPS) Agreements through the upgrading of existing national and regional quality infrastructure.

The WAQP National Coordinator said Metrology, which he defined as the technology or science of measurement, including fundamental, legal and industrial metrology, is one of the intervention areas of the Programme together with Standards, Accreditation, Inspection, Testing and Certification. He said these are the elements that constitute the totality of the National Quality Infrastructure (NQI).

Mr. Ndenn added that the Programme is supporting the establishment of a national metrology laboratory by the Government of The Gambia in Abuko which will be the custodian of primary standards and ill provide calibration services to all who require them i.e industry, testing laboratories and the legal metrology institutions such as the Weights and Measures Bureau for their weighing scales etc.

In his remark, Hon. Sellou Bah, the Chairman of the National Assembly Committee on Trade, said the celebration of World Metrology Day is important for both the consumers and traders. He assured the support of his committee and the National Assembly in the enactment of legislation to strengthen the work of the Weights and Measures Bureau and matters promoting fair trade in the country.

Mr. Abdoulie Jammeh, the Director of Trade, who deputized the Minister of Trade, Industry, Regional Integration and Employment, said the event is a day for reflection on the important role of metrology and the challenges they face as a society in their efforts to ensure fairness in trade through measurement.

The Trade Minister said day is celebrated on the 20th May of every year to mark the signing of the Metre Convention on 20th May 1875 by 17 founnder member nations. He added that the aim of the Convention is to develop and introduce a standardized international system of units of measurement (SI Units) and that as a result it set forth the framework for global collaboration in the science of measurements and in its industrial, commercial arid societal application. “This collaboration has ensured world-wide uniformity of measurements, subsequently eliminating unnecessary multiple tests and measurements. I his has the benefit of a world-wide product acceptance,” he said.

The Minister applauded the national theme “Measurement in the retail trade”, noting that it is important and timely as they are making efforts to encourage the use of reliable measurements in the market place.

“Reliable measurements are needed not only to enable us trade with other countries but also within the retail sector to ensure fairness to consumers for the price they pay for goods” said the Trade Minister.

He thanked the WAQP for the support it is providing to improve standards infrastructure and programmes in The Gambia.

Presentations were made by Mr. Dominic Jammeh and Mr. Cherno Njie, Deputy Controller and Senior Inspector of Weights and Measures, respectively and Mr. Sulayman Madi Sillah, representing Consumers.

Interventions were made by the participants including Mr. Omar Sallah, Chair of the WMB Revitalisation Committee, National Assembly Members, private sector operators in the trade, industry and service sectors etc on issues of how to eliminate unfair trading practices based on the use of incorrect weights and measures in the retail trade and to strengthen the Weights and Measures Bureau to be more effective in this area.

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