UNBS certifies 1,300 products, falls short of target

Kampala, Uganda | THE INDEPENDENT | Uganda National Bureau of Standards (UNBS) was able to inspect and certify 1,350 products from small business in the last financial year but failed to hit its target of 3,000 products.

Ben Manyindo, the standards body Executive Director, said on Wednesday at Uganda Media Centre that the shortfall was that many small businesses failed to raise money for certification or were unable to complete things they were asked to put in place on time to get certified.

Last year, UNBS put in place measure to ensure that all products that come in the market are certified. This meant that all small businesses in Uganda must have a distinctive mark from UNBS to be put on shelves in supermarkets.

Many of the companies failed to get the mark.  The challenges that failed their certification were that the smallest businesses failed to raise the money – just Shs 1m-1.5m. Manyindo said that other businesses were asked to change in their operations, including sanitation but some could not do that.

Manyindo said as the standards body, they are urging government to set up a fund for at least three years to help some of these businesses pay the cost of certification. They haven’t succeeded.

Joseph Mawejje, the manager of Lindemei Investments Limited based in Miggadde Kawempe and producers of Gweke maize snack said the whole process to get the UNBS mark takes about a month but many companies fail because they are asked to change a lot of things whenever the inspectors come.

Some changes, he said, requires the company to spend money on them and it is usually not readily available.

Another local manufacturer, who preferred anonymity, said the cost of acquiring a UNBS mark is more than the official fee. He said many businesses have to informally pay some UNBS officials for pre-inspection audit so that when the main inspectors come they are ready. The cost can go up to Shs 2m.

Meanwhile, the substandard goods on the market remained almost the same as a year before. UNBS says it managed to reduce them from 54% reported in the 2017/18 financial year to 51% in 2018/19.

The organisation targets to reduce that figure to between 5 and 10%.

This leaves more than half of the products on the Ugandan market substandard.

UNBS has previously asked its budget to be upped so that it can get more manpower and open more offices in different districts. Last year, the agency was allocated Shs 47.8bn but was not enough to fund all its activities.

At least 6 billion shillings was spent on the construction of a food safety lab in Nakawa.

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