Ethiopian Ministry of Trade (MoT) is reviewing a draft regulation to implement the Mandatory Standards Proclamation of 2003.

The Ministry held a discussion on May 23 to 24, 2013, at Kaleb Hotel,  with stakeholders from the Ethiopian Standard Agency (ESA), Ethiopian Conformity Assessment Enterprise, Ethiopian Accreditation Office and the National Meteorology Institute.

The 2003 Mandatory Standards Proclamation listed mandatory standards for 121 products including cement, nails, reinforcement bars, blocks mineral water and fertilizer.

“One of the challenges of the country’s trade is substandard products, which are available in the market at large,” said Ali Siraj, State Minister for Trade, during the workshop.

“In order to bring fair trade and expand foreign trade, regulating these mandatory standards is crucial", he added.

The regulation will enable fair market competition by regulating both import and export goods, Tamiru Geno, Import & Export Goods Quality Control Directorate director at the Ministry, told Fortune.
include feedbacks from the workshop, before issuing the final draft, Tamiru said.

Source: Fortune