Africa coming of age in standardisation
Correspondent | Friday March 28, 2014 14:24
Mmegi : Please explain in detail the mandate of your organisation (AFSEC)?
Johnson: African Electro-technical Standardisation Commission (AFSEC) was established in 2008 after the African Organisation for Standardisation (ARSO) decided to expand its electro-technical standardisation scope. The framework for agreement on technical standards in developed countries was established during the first half of the 20th Century. In contrast in Africa, the infrastructure to co-operate on electro technical standards has yet to develop at a continental level. With the exception of a few countries, there has been little or no infrastructure established for standards to be reviewed and updated to be in line with progress in international standardisation.
AFSEC objectives include the facilitation of trade on the African continent by removing the different technical obstacles, thus opening new markets and furthering economic integration and economic growth. As well as to further international cooperation for all matters of standardisation and related subjects such as the verification of conformity with standards, in the fields of electricity, electronics and associated technologies aimed at promoting international harmony.
Mmegi : How beneficial will it be to the economy of Botswana if it harmonizes its (electro technical) standards with other countries in the region/continent?
Johnson: This is an on-going process; so ‘how beneficial’ is not easy to estimate. What we know is that in other countries/trading blocks, studies have indicated that appropriate standardisation leads to the improvement of the GDP of the country. Having the same technical standards allows for increased cross border trade, optimizes issues such as technical training, commissioning and maintenance, the ability to test for conformance to the standards; all this benefits of collective standardisation at a regional/continental level allows industrialisation to happen faster and more effectively.
Mmegi : Will standardisation be able to save this country’s power?
Johnson: Not necessarily and not on its own. Standardization will provide some of the tools that can help appropriate standards to be promoted, such and those that cover energy efficient appliances, and smart metering” of electricity, and increased the art at which new technologies for using renewable energy are accepted and applied. In fact industrialisation will normally require a country to increase its use of power, so what standardisation can do is help the increasing needs for power to be used more efficiently.
Mmegi :In monetary terms how much is the region losing due to the absence of standardisation?
Johnson: I don’t believe anyone knows. There are certainly lost opportunity costs, because instead of collaborating among the African countries to build up local capacity to manufacture more equipment and materials locally to the same agreed standards, we continue to import. We have all the raw material in Africa to manufacture nearly all what we need to develop the electricity networks and electro technical industry but we choose to import.
Mmegi : What is the main obstacle to standardisation in the world (Botswana included)?
Johnson: Countries like to be independent in what they do as much as possible –it is natural, that is what makes a nation proud and strong. However, we live in a global economy, and cannot provide everything we need for ourselves. So we need to collaborate, and organisations like IEC and ISO, internationally, and AFSEC and ARSO in Africa provide the framework for countries to do that in the field of standards.
Mmegi : How expensive is to standardise (a country perspective)?
Johnson: Standardisation requires the time of technical experts to work in technical committees and working groups, and enabling structures like BOBS to direct and facilitate the work. This work needs to be directed to the appropriate standards needs of the country/region.
Having access to the necessary testing facilities to confirm compliance to the standards also requires money, and in the context of electrical equipment such test facilities (and the people to do the testing) can be “ expensive”. But how expensive is it not to standardise?
For example, If BPC staff cannot repair a power line for weeks because the line was built with ‘non-standard’ parts that have to be ordered from overseas, it becomes a cost to the economy.
Mmegi : Can IEC help individual countries standardize, if so how and at what cost?
Johnson: In its field of electro technical standardisation, the IEC is helping industrialising countries to gain experience through its affiliate country programme, which is a free programme that provides for access to a limited number of IEC (international) standards.
One of the key roles of the NEC will be to use this programme and advise BOBS on which IEC standards, local industry finds useful and should be considered for national adoption. Similarly, through membership of AFSEC, NECs in Africa can collaborate to consider IEC standards needed for continental integration
Mmegi : How will standardisation help local electrical equipment manufacturers?
Johnson: This is an important aspect – Most electro technical equipment is required to confirm to IEC standards for local use and for import and export. Unless we standardise among ourselves in Africa, based on these IEC standards, our local manufactures cannot grow their market.
Mmegi : Do you have any advice to help Botswana standardise?
Johnson: There is no quick fix. BOBS is already in place to facilitate the work – but BOBS relies on industry to advise on the standards needed to help local industry develop. In the case of electro technical sector, the NEC has been established to provide that strong link with the industry. Senior managers /executives in industry need to be sensitised to the important role that their technical staff play in contributing to the technical committees of BOBS, and in due course, hopefully, AFSEC and IEC.