RSB Director General, Director General of Kigali Forensic Laboratory and Division Manager of National Quality Testing Laboratories (RSB) at the designation certificates handover event

Today, 23rd August 2018 at Lemigo Hotel in Kigali, Rwanda Standards Board (RSB) organized ceremony to handover designation certificates to eleven local laboratories that were designated by Honorable Minister of Trade and Industry.

The laboratory designation practice is in compliance with the East African Community Standardization, Quality Assurance, Metrology and Testing (SQMT) Act 2006.  In its article 12, the Acts says that Partner States may establish or designate organizations to function as Testing Laboratories to provide scientific and technical services to perform conformity assessment services for compulsory standards.

The East African Community Standardization, Quality Assurance, Metrology and Testing (designation of Testing Laboratories) regulation requests that the Minister responsible for the implementation of the SQMT shall designate approved National Quality Testing Laboratories upon the advice of the National Standards Body.  In the case of the Republic of Rwanda, these powers are entrusted to the Ministry of Trade and Industry. 

Participants to the event

Participants

In his remarks, Mr. Raymond Murenzi, Director General of Rwanda Standards Board stated: “After one year period of building capacity and supporting local quality testing laboratories to comply with International Standard (ISO/IEC 17025)’s requirements for laboratories that offer conformity assessment services, 11 laboratories have met the requirements of the East African Community Standardization, Quality Assurance, Metrology and Testing (designation of Testing Laboratories) Regulation, and have demonstrated compliance to ISO/IEC 17025 International Standard. RSB conducted audits to check on compliance with the standards and the qualifying laboratories were presented to Honourable Minister of Trade and Industry designated them. Today, we handed over the designated certificate to them. We are happy to have other testing laboratories designated; this helps to ease access to quality testing services and stakeholders can easily access the services using a designated laboratory in their neighborhood. Also considering that the designated scope will be the only one to be considered when it comes to checking the reliability of test results. More laboratories are in the pipeline and we encourage many more to enter the designation process and to ease access to testing services and reduce testing time, amongst other challenges”.

The event for Certificates of Designation awarding ceremony and awareness session was attended by representatives of institutions harboring testing laboratories in the country. The designated laboratories include: St. Joseph Engineering Company and laboratory of Kigali Integrated Polytechnic Regional Center (IPRC Kigali) laboratories as well as the laboratory of the Université Libre de Kigali (ULK) were designated to test construction materials ,  Alex Stewart International Rwanda laboratory was designated to test minerals,  INES Ruhengeri laboratory and Africa Improved Food Ltd laboratories were designated to test food, National Agriculture Export Development Board (NAEB) laboratory was designated to test soil, fertilizers, water, Coffee and Tea.  Also, in the area of testing water, the laboratory of University of Rwanda was designated. Horizon SOPYRWA Ltd saw its Musanze based laboratory designated to test essential oils and CIMERWA laboratory in Rusizi district was  designated to test the quality of soil and cement.

The detailed designated scope of these laboratories can be found at RSB website: www.rsb.gov.rw