NASSAU, The Bahamas -- Building structure that supports International and Domestic trade is the Bahamas Government’s strategy to teach Bahamians how to feed themselves without dependency on foreign imports.

“It is indeed a privilege to welcome you to the first National Forum promoting dialogue between our national quality infrastructure – the Bahamas Bureau of Standards -- and our Agriculture sector,” said Financial Services Minister the Hon. Ryan Pinder.

“In August of this year, we conducted a national consultation to engage discussions of all stakeholder groups on a draft regional quality infrastructure policy being developed by CROSQ. The meeting was very successful. Bahamians have demonstrated that they are enthusiastic and ready to embrace a culture where quality becomes a priority and a way of life.”

On October 27, the Ministry of Financial Services partnered with the Ministry of Agriculture to transmit vital information that promotes dialogue on sustainable Food Security measures with local agriculture and animal husbandry.

The Bahamas Bureau of Standards and the CARICOM Regional Organisation for Standards & Quality (CROSQ) held a forum, under the theme “Promoting Dialogue Between The National Quality Infrastructure (BBS) & The Agriculture Sector” at Melia Nassau Beach Hotel.

Minister Pinder said that during the consultation meeting, he expressed the need for more global collaboration and cooperation, as it relates to standards and quality.

“Such collaborations allow us to harmonize our positions in relation to standardization, conformity assessments, accreditation and metrology, given our uniqueness in heritage, culture, food and ways of life,” said Mr. Pinder.

“To date, The Bahamas is the only member state of CROSQ that has yet to fully implement a national quality infrastructure. I believe we have a great advantage to develop a national quality infrastructure, correctly, the first time around, with guidance from regional and international technical cooperation’s, such as CROSQ and The Germany Metrology Institute (PTB), present today.”

Mr. Pinder said that a national quality infrastructure network must be geared to international requirements. He also said these are required in order for an international commodity trading and exchange of services possible: “Quality infrastructure refers to all aspects of metrology, standardization, testing, quality management, certification and accreditation that have a bearing on conformity assessment. This includes both public and private institutions and the regulatory framework within which they operate.

“The main thrust for competitiveness on international markets is quality. Quality infrastructure is a fundamental aspect of any business environment. Market-based transactions can only occur when buyers and sellers agree on product or service characteristics, in other words, the quality of the product being traded.”

Minister Pinder said that this assurance can be very simple, such as visual inspection of the product, or very complex, requiring a chain of compliance evidences issued by trusted and technically capable service providers: “In the case of a national quality infrastructure, the Bahamas Bureau of Standards will, at the very least: guarantee access to international standards and technical regulations, assure consistent and trustworthy measurements of food products, and build a system that will allow accreditation of its testing and certification facilities in such a way that is internationally accepted.

“Maybe more important, as we develop our agriculture capacity domestically, a national quality infrastructure will be able to support local agricultural industries and consumers.”

He noted that the Bureau of Standards will partner with agricultural regulatory agencies to enforce standards and technical regulations that conform to international requirements.

“For instance, when exporting agricultural and food products, it is necessary as a minimum to demonstrate compliance with international sanitary, phyto-sanitary and safety standards. Other specifications must also be met such as those related, for example, to packaging and labeling of food products.”

The Financial Services Minister also said that producers in developing countries who desire to export their product must meet the demands of the target markets in terms of quality, safety, reliability, environmental compatibility and hygiene.

“This is essentially true for all agricultural products. To satisfy these obligations, a quality infrastructure that meets international standards must exist that monitors and certifies the production chains. If this infrastructure is not in place or if it is underdeveloped, the lack of acceptable proof can constitute a technical barrier to trade.

“With this in mind, The Bahamas, must, with haste, implement an infrastructure that measures up to at least the bare minimum systems’ requirements of standardization, metrology and conformity assessment.”

Mr. Pinder said many standards are developed by national, regional and international standards bodies and they will help boost trade by lowering its costs, promoting linkages with other sectors, and further open up the Bahamas and our agriculture sector to foreign and global markets. He used examples of ISO, Codex Alimentarius, and CROSQ to name a few. He also said that other standards are developed by industrial sectors themselves and are enhanced by technical regulations.

“Maintaining a proper functioning Quality Infrastructure requires adopting regional and global standards as national standards. This will ensure a level of quality and a place in the competitive market for agricultural produce locally, regionally and internationally,” said Mr. Pinder.

“Further, this will also ensure that goods and services that enter and are produced in this country are of the highest quality. When products and services are made to conform to standards, Bahamians will have confidence that they are safe, reliable and of good quality.”

He added that Standards require precision in measuring value for dollar in trade to give the assurance of transparency in equity between transactions.

“Metrology refers to accuracy of weights and measures in commerce. In order to conduct business, we need fair and honest trade of accurate weights and measures.

“The Bahamas Bureau of Standards has been mandated by virtue of its Weights and Measures Act of 2006 to regulate and ensure the accuracy of all weights and measurement activities in the Commonwealth of The Bahamas.”

Mr. Pinder said these measurements must be reliable and traceable to international measurement standards, so that tests for production, quality and certification activities are correct.

“It is vital to properly implement a metrology system so that all Bahamian businesses and consumers alike can be assured that all products for consumption are accurate and comply with the highest quality and standards.

“Sending samples and instruments abroad for testing is economically costly to our businesses; these products and processes can preferably be tested locally at the Bureau of Standards. The BBS is mandated to test precision instruments and gauges for accuracy and calibrations used in industrial and commercial activities.”

Minister Pinder introduced the concept of conformity, which gives customers confidence in your brand of service as a component of standardization most consumers take for granted.

“Conformity assessment involves a set of processes that prove your product, service or system meets the requirements of a standard. It is the bow tie that knots all of the components together. Implementing a quality infrastructure with conformity assessment procedures in place provides added confidence to consumers and all stakeholders. It can also give your agricultural businesses a competitive edge. It can help regulators ensure that health, safety or environmental conditions are met through testing, certification, and inspection of products and services.

“It is with all these components in mind, we realize that the goal of this forum has significant consequences in the development of a national quality infrastructure in partnership with the agriculture sector. Together if our efforts are collaborated we could make certain that a better culture of quality and safety would be developed for all Bahamians.”