Africa Quality Policy Meeting Takes Key Steps to Strengthen Africa’s Quality Infrastructure

19 March 2026 - The 6th meeting of the Africa Quality Policy Council (AQPC), held in Mombasa, Kenya from 11 to 12 March 2026, concluded with a series of decisions to advance Africa’s quality infrastructure. The Council adopted framework documents for the Made in Africa Certification Scheme, endorsed a roadmap for the Africa Quality Awards Scheme (AQAS) and discussed resource mobilization to support continental quality infrastructure initiatives. The Council requested the African Union Commission (AUC) to work with UNIDO to translate the Africa Quality Policy (AQP) Action Plan into an operational project framework.  

The meeting was opened with a high-level technical workshop aligned with the 2026 African Union Theme of the Year, “Assuring Sustainable Water Availability and Safe Sanitation Systems to Achieve the Goals of Agenda 2063.” Participants highlighted the critical role of quality infrastructure—including standards, technical regulations, metrology, conformity assessment, and accreditation—in ensuring safe and sustainable water and sanitation systems across Africa.

The AQPC Council meeting on 12 March was chaired by Mrs. Ron Osman Omar, Director of Industry, Minerals, Entrepreneurship, and Tourism (IMET) at the African Union Commission. Council members reviewed progress under the Africa Quality Policy framework and discussed priority actions to strengthen Africa’s quality ecosystem.

UNIDO was represented by Bernard Bau, Head of Unit in the MSME Competitiveness, Quality and Job Creation Division; Kamara Mehefolo, Regional Coordinator of the ACP Quality Infrastructure Programme (ACP QIP) Africa Component; and Rebeca Gallardo Gomez, Industrial Development Expert, who contributed to the technical workshop and panel discussions.

The meeting reaffirmed the commitment of African institutions and partners to advancing a strong quality infrastructure system to support industrial development, trade competitiveness and sustainable growth across Africa.

For more information, please contact Mr. Bernard Bau, B.BAU [at] unido.org