The Consumers Federation of Kenya (Cofek) received a major profile boost as the Kenya Accreditation Service (KENAS) joined and paid up its special corporate benefactor membership category early this week.

The development happened days after Cofek Secretary General and Eastern Africa Region Alliance of National Consumer Organizations Chairman Mr Stephen Mutoro met with the East African Community Secretary General Dr Richard Sezibera (pictured below right) at his Arusha office on 6th June.

Accreditation is third-party attestation related to a conformity assessment body conveying formal demonstration of its competence to carry out specific conformity assessment tasks.

The Kenya Accreditation Service (KENAS) is recognized by the Government of Kenya as the sole National Accreditation Body that gives formal recognition that Certification Bodies (CBs), Inspection Bodies (IBs) and Laboratories (testing and calibration, proficiency testing scheme providers are competent to carry out specific conformity assessment tasks.

KENAS is responsible for the Accreditation of Certification Bodies to ISO/IEC 17021:2006 and ISO Guide 65 (including adherence to the IAF interpretation of the same and laboratories (testing and calibration) to ISO/IEC 17025. Medical laboratories to ISO/IEC 15189, PT providers to ISO guide 43 and Inspection bodies are accredited to ISO/IEC 17020 standards.

The Kenya Accreditation Service (KENAS) was established vide Legal Notice No. 55 of 2009.

Its principal functions include provision of regulatory and accreditation services at par with international standards to Conformity Assessment Bodies (CABs) that include Certification Bodies (CBs), Inspection Bodies (IBs), Testing Laboratories (Testing and Calibration) and proficiency test providers.

KENAS in collaboration with its various partners carried out a series of training programmes to build the necessary capacity of expert pool of assessors under the EAC-SQMT Project involving Kenya, Uganda,Tanzania Rwanda and Burundi.. This has so far been done for Testing Laboratories (ISO 17025), Certification Bodies (ISO 17021), Medical and clinical laboratories (ISO 15189) and Inspection bodies (ISO 17020).

KENAS conducts awareness seminars on the importance and benefits of Accreditation, for policy makers and stakeholders under the assistance of partners.

KENAS is an associate member of international laboratory cooperation (ILAC). Its associate membership application to international accreditation forum (IAF) is under consideration by the IAF board.

KENAS joined the rest of the world in the first and second international accreditation days on the 9th June 2008 and 9th June 2009 whose  themes  were “Delivering trust in the market”  and competence respectively. KENAS is scheduled to join the rest of the world in celebrating 3rd world accreditation day  (WAD) on the 9th June 2010.