By: Kebba AF Touray
The Gambia Trade Minister Bai Lamin Jobe has confirmed to lawmakers that fourteen thematic standards have been set by his Ministry through the Gambia Standards Bureau.
Minister Jobe said this in response to a question raised by member for Sandu, Muhammed Mahanera., who asked him to update the legislature on the set standards for imported electrical materials.
He added that the standards were developed through a multi-stakeholder technical committee through a process of prioritization and assessment needs, safety issues, consumers’ concerns and private sector input.
“The Gambia Standards Bureau has also developed standards on renewable energy such as Photo voltaic (PV) systems and on energy efficiency appliance”, he said.
He also said that upon the development of these standards, the bureau conducted sensitization and promotion of these standards to stakeholders, including the consumers, and engages directly regulators for their adoption in their regulations.
The fourteen set standards are; national electrical wiring, conductors of insulated cables, household and similar electrical appliance safety, switches for households and similar fixed electrical installation, boxes and enclosures for electrical accessories for households and similar fixed electrical installation.
The standards also include plugs and socket outlets for households and similar purposes, circuit breakers for overcurrent protection for household and similar. Part 1 circuit breakers for a.c operation, circuit breakers for overcurrent protection for household and similar installation part 2 circuit breakers for a.c and d.c operation.
It also include round wire concentric lay overhead electrical stranded conductors, electric cables-calculation of the current rating, guide to the selection of high voltage cables, power cables with extruded insulation and their accessories for rated voltages, power cables with extruded insulation and their accessories for rated voltages and power cables with extruded insulation and their accessories for rated voltages.
He said, “there is a challenge of lack of clear specified regulator for many of these electrical products such as cables and similar items”.
“My Ministry, through the support from the Standards bureau, will put in place a scheme to regulate certain priority electrical products, by conducting pre-import verification for conformity”, said Minister Jobe.
