KAMPALA- The Minister of State in charge of Industry Hon David Bahati has disclosed that Uganda National Bureau of Standards has the mandate to ensure the safety of the lives of Ugandans and also ensure the standards of the products that are produced in the country so that they can meet international standards and access the markets both domestically and internationally.Â
Minister Bahati made these revelations while addressing Parliament and said that as a result of expansion of the industrial sector growth, the country is now contributing 27.4% to the national GDP, and manufacturing alone contribute16.5%, grown from 85 factories that existed in 1986 but are now 9,400 factories.
The Minister noted that the increase in a number of factories requires capacity to monitor all their activities to ensure that their products are inspected and the standards are kept.
“The length of time that we take should be on average of two months and we shall get the report to see how many have applied and how long we have taken to satisfy” He said.
He explained the reasons as to why it would take long, because some people and companies when asked for some information, they don’t give it in time, and yet the government must ensure the safety of these products.
” I am happy that there seems to be a consensus coming out on the members of the Parliament that Uganda National Bureau of Standards needs to be supported, to be given resources to recruit enough people for enforcement, and for satisfaction,” The Minister said.
On the issue of harmonization of Uganda National Bureau of Standards laws and National Drugs Authority, the Minister said that they proposed an amendment to the Uganda National Drugs Act.
Minister Bahati explained that they are working together with the Ministry of Health to ensure that they harmonize to see which products are handled by Uganda National Bureau of Standards and which products are going to be handled by National Drugs Authority and the Attorney General is providing guidance in this matter.
