SME’s product and service delivery to improve with standards

Accra, Jan. 16, 2022 – Small and Medium Scale Enterprises will see improvement, especially master craft persons and operators in the technical and vocational sectors of the economy, with the development of standards and practice guidelines.

The standards will enhance and strengthen the development of high-quality finished products through standardisation, metrology and conformity through the exchange of knowledge and expertise.
Ms Constance Elizabeth Swaniker, the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) and Founder of the Design and Technology Institute (DTI), said this when the Institute signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the Ghana Standards Authority (GSA).
She said crafts persons, individuals working in the informal sector, females and the youth would benefit more from the signing of the MoU as it would lead to the development of standards and guidelines for precision quality.
The CEO said the MoU formed part of DTI’s collaborative strategy to work with key stakeholders to reach the objective under the ‘Transforming youth TVET livelihood for sustainable jobs’ project in partnership with the Mastercard Foundation’s ‘Young Africa Work’ strategy.
The ‘Young Africa Works’ initiative seeks to enable three million young people, particularly women, to access dignified and fulfilling work opportunities by 2030.
The three-year project will create 40,000 direct and indirect work opportunities for the youth, especially young women, through TVET.
Under the project, DTI will work with the GSA to develop standards that will guide the development and testing of prototype products that will serve the ever-growing industrial needs of Ghana and the sub-region.
Ms Swaniker said the collaboration with the Authority would help develop acceptable standards in the development and testing of prototype products for Ghana’s industries while maintaining international standards.
“We do not only teach at DTI, but we are creating high-quality products that will serve the needs of industries and Ghanaians. At DTI, we have been championing the adoption of Precision Quality in TVET institutions and among master craft persons across the country as well as industries,” she added.

She said the MoU affirmed the regulator’s trust in what they were doing and how it would bridge the product development gap for consumers.

“We will continue to work with the authority in the area of policy development and advocacy which will lead to a mindset shift among Ghanaians when quality is concerned,” she said.

Professor Alex Dodoo, Director-General of GSA, said the MoU aimed to find ways of formalizing the informal sector.

He said, “As the Government Agency mandated to promote standardisation in the country, we are uniquely positioned to work together with DTI and other entrepreneurship training institutions to streamline their efforts and ensure that international standards and best practices are adhered to in a sustainable manner.”
He said this would facilitate the creation of dignified, well-paying, and fulfilling job opportunities in the country and if the products from these companies were standardized and of high quality, they would be capable of competing effectively in the export market.
Prof. Dodoo, who is also the President-elect of the African Organisation for Standardisation, called on Ghanaians to have a precision-quality mindset that settles for nothing but the highest quality of goods and services.
These, he said, will make Ghana visible for quality and improve the country’s global competitiveness.