Jenifer James
Africa-Press – South-Sudan. The South Sudan National Bureau of Standards and the Uganda National Bureau of Standards harmonised efforts to ensure standards and quality in transboundary trade.
In a statement released on Thursday, the Chairperson of the Council of the South Sudan National Bureau of Standards, Dr. Kuorwel Kuai, said the meeting discussed the maize export that had threatened to ruin border trade between the two countries.
He said they have agreed that cereal products coming from Uganda must be accompanied documents from the Uganda National Bureau of Standards.
“Cereal and cereal products (mainly maize flour) from the Republic of Uganda must be accompanied by a certification permit from the Uganda National Bureau of Standards (UNBS),” said Kuai.
Kuai said the government has discussed sanitary and phytosanitary (SPS) issues, including standards requirements for other products such as fruits and vegetables, dairy products, chicken and chicken products (eggs), and beverages.
According to Kuai, South Sudan requested that other products such as fruits and vegetables, dairy products (fresh milk and yogurts), chicken and chicken products, and fish and fish products be accompanied by the SPS certificate from the sanitary and phytosanitary (SPS) authorities in Uganda.
Kuai said SSNBS has noted that there are some products from Uganda labelled for export to South Sudan.
He decried the inactivity of the MoU signed with the Uganda National Bureau of Standards in 2017, saying it has not been operationalized.
The official said they agreed to have the MoU reviewed to become fully operationalised.
Meanwhile, the Acting Executive Director for UNBS, Nangalama Daniel Richard, assured the South Sudan Bureau of Standards that Uganda is committed to ensuring having product labels for ‘export to South Sudan only.’
Nangalama agreed to share the concerns of the South Sudan National Bureau of Standards with other agencies.
He asked the SSNBS to submit the list of companies that labelled goods as “export to South Sudan” to UNBS for action.
“The arrangement that we had by then has been to make sure that high-risk product is to be accompanied by a certificate of analysis. Our traders need to know very well that product certification is not about the company certification; it is about that particular product being certified by the Uganda National Bureau of Standards,” he explained.
The two bodies have agreed to set up the technical team to harmonize sampling, test methods, and certification processes.
Also, they urged the technical team to start their work immediately and present their report within a month in a meeting that will be convened in Elegu, Uganda.
Source: The City Review South Sudan
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