Maputo — The Mozambican government, through the National Standardization and Quality Institute (INNOQ), is introducing a Conformity Assessment Programme (PAC) to put an end to the entry and circulation of substandard and counterfeit products in the country.
According to the Minister of Industry and Trade, Silvino Moreno, speaking at the opening of a seminar regarding the disclosure of the PAC for products imported into Mozambique, the Government, through an international public tender, has selected Intertek International Limited to carry out conformity assessment.
“With PAC, we also want to safeguard the environment, preventing the country from becoming a dumping ground for materials, equipment and products that do not meet the requirements set out in applicable technical standards and regulations’, the Minister said, adding “it is important to emphasize that one of the fundamental objectives of the PAC is to ensure the circulation of safe and healthy products within the national territory.’
The Minister also said that conformity assessment programs, both for local and imported products, are established and implemented globally, following the guidelines of the World Trade Organization (WTO), through public and private institutions to ensure that consumers are provided with products that meet minimum quality requirements.
For his part, the national director of INNOQ, Geraldo Albasini, said that the aim is to promote the import of quality products by assessing compliance with the requirements of technical standards, in accordance with Mozambican legislation.
“With this programme, we intend to reduce the level of production and circulation of substandard or low-quality products, from foodstuffs to construction materials’, he said, stressing that the production of food, specifically goods with mandatory fortification (corn flour, wheat, cooking oil, sugar and salt) must comply with the standards required in the country.
The seminar also aimed to ensure that the needs and expectations of customers and users are met by supplying products that meet the minimum quality requirements and, above all, consumer protection.