Minister of Cabinet: Tightening on Imports Requires Exertion of Efforts by All

Khartoum - The Minister of the Council of Ministers Ahmed Saad Omer has revealed that policies and punishments would be developed during the coming days on violations of quality and standards.
He affirmed determination of his ministry to apply the law on the violators of the standards, adding that the Council of Ministers will monitor every commodity enters the country to ensure its safety and coincidence with the standards, revealing existence of check points at all the gates of the borders to tighten control on the imports for realization of protection to consumers and the national economy a matter that needs exertion of efforts and coordination among all the concerned organs.

He said, in his reply to a question raised by the member Essam El-Din Omar from the constituency (178) of Gedarif on the market fullness of non-valid goods in the sitting of the National Assembly held Monday chaired by its Speaker Ahmed Ibrahim Al-Tahir, the Minister said that the Sudanese Corporation for Standards and Metrology remained, since its establishment, working for development its monitoring role through capacity building and training of its technical staff, establishment of modern labs and expansion of its umbrella until becoming coverage most parts of the country.

With regard to the control of the imports, the Minister stressed subjection of all goods that pass through the key gates of state to examination and no item will be released unless its conformity with the standard specifications is ensured.

He noted that out of (100.775) consignments imported through the outlets of the state during the period from January 2011 to May 2012, (377) consignments were not released for violating the standard specifications, explaining that the food materials represented (28.12%) of them while the electronic appliances and equipment (13.53%), cars and spare parts (11.41%), cosmetics (10.08%). But the clothing, textiles, construction materials and production inputs represented (7.69%), (6.37%), (6.63%), respectively.
With respect to the control of markets, Omer said that the corporation and through the National Committee for Consumer Affairs during the past year launched (53) campaigns in the center and the states to combat goods not conforming to the standard specifications resulted in the seizure of numerous irregularities against which actions were taken.

He pointed out that the corporation planned this year for the implementation of (70) campaigns as part of its annual campaign which includes several the activities aiming to protect the consumer.
Concerning the national products, the minister disclosed that the Sudanese Corporation for Standards and Metrology has implemented campaigns for industrial inspection covered, from the beginning of the year to date, (340) industrial facilities and the campaigns have registered notes on those facilities, and now it is following the correction procedures with their owners.

Saad said that despite the efforts being made in the control of imports, but there are issues which hamper these efforts represented in the entry of goods under the umbrella of personal luggage without being subjected to the necessary tests to confirm their compliance with the standard specifications, which has been a concern to the corporation specially those goods enter by companies and individuals, explaining that they constitute a huge market and they jeopardize the safety and life of the citizen to risk,
The Minister stated that tightening of control to the key gates of the state made the traders of invalid commodities to the resort to the smuggling a matter that contributed to the invasion of market with goods violated the standard specifications, revealing that many suppliers and producers do not care about the circulation of products, saving and storing them in appropriate and recommended conditions although they are the most important factors that contribute to the survival of the product intact and well throughout the period of validity.

The member Omar, for his part, called for transferring the response to the relevant committee and the parliament responded to his request because of the importance of the issue for further study and recommendations thereon to be submitted to the National Assembly.