A one-day National Quality Dialogue Forum for public and private sector got underway in Dominica on Thursday.
The workshop seeks to start and promote the conversation on quality control through the Dominica Bureau of Standards and the agricultural and fisheries sectors which have been identified by the Government as a priority for development.
The project’s objective is to strengthen the demand orientation of Quality Infrastructure services so that the private sector and consumers’ access to a coordinated National and Regional Quality Infrastructure can be improved.
Speaking at an opening ceremony held at the Fort Young Hotel on Thursday, Director of the Dominica Bureau of Standards, Dr. Steve John said the role of a national quality infrastructure is critical, in the sense that it is the national quality infrastructure that certifies that the goods or the service meets the requirements of the market.
“You have to have a standard that set the criteria for the product, you have to have a system that says that the standards requirements are met, that is your testing,” he stated. “You have to have a body that certifies that the test results are correct. That is where you have the whole question of testing and certification. In order to export, the partners out there must ensure that your systems, your testings, your standards are somehow linked with international requirement … when your systems are accredited it provides the kind of international recognition that your system meets international requirements.”
Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of CARICOM Regional Organization for Standards and Quality (CROSQ), Deryck Omar said at the workshop that in order to ensure a robust demand-driven national quality infrastructure, there needs to be a continual dialogue between the national quality infrastructure institutions and the private sector to ensure that the right services are being developed to support private industry needs.
He stated further that the Dominica Bureau of Standards plays a pivotal role at the regional level in the development of CARICOM regional standards, “so not only that the Dominica Bureau of Standards have a national agenda, but they also help to promote CARICOM regional integration by getting involved in standard development at the regional level.”
“In particular Dominica leads in the area of fresh produce. Dominica is host to the regional technical committee that deals with fresh produce standardization,: he said.
He noted that if the Dominica Bureau of Standards had additional resources it would be within the top five bureaus in the Caribbean community because, “of its demand driven orientation to its business, secondly because of its private sector output and thirdly because of the private sector business model that it absorbs within itself to try to promote its activities.”
“The project’s objective is to strengthen the demand orientation of Quality Infrastructure services so that the private sector and consumers’ access to a coordinated National and Regional Quality Infrastructure can be improved.” (Steve John).
Steve what on earth are you talking about? I know I am not a doctor of anything eh, but I can’t make any sense out of the gibberish, or practically the rubbish in the quote above, because when we speak about Infrastructure of a country that includes Rods, Hospitals police precincts, and in general all buildings in the country, generally the underlying foundation, or basic framework of a system such as permanent installations required, for military purpose, the system of public works of a country, State or region, personal buildings or equipment required for an activity, that’s the definition of Infrastructure.
Thank you….. We need to set quality standards and also make sure these standards are being upheld. If done correctly, this should help to boost our view internally and externally in terms of development and our tourism product.
We are always having meetings at fort young. How many factories build and run by dominicans to export goods.
That is a very important, and good question. Dominicans like to talk about things. Each time they get in front of a camera, hoping their face will make it into the papers, Radio, and Television, they shoot their mouth off trying to impress people the are doing something!
That is the Dominican way of existing, they talk but by the time night falls and they take that drink of rum, by the dawn of day the completely forget the events of the day before, the conveniently gets amnesia, and when reminded of their promises by someone, the answer is always “well we doh have de money; well they already have something like that in Barbados, or Antigua.”
From way back in the 1950’s we heard talk about building an International Airport in the country; most politicians objected to the idea, when ask why do object the expected was always “well we doh want it cause Antigua, and Barbados have one already.” WIBC” was give to Dominica Labor Party say we doh can afford it, so Grenada got it…
Good thing allu mentioned fisheries. I think they should clean the fish when I buy it. I don’t like to clean fish.