The BQSP Newsletter
The BQSP quarterly newsletter, published in January April, July and October, highlights some of the important activities of the programme, reports on the results of, and discusses the issues raised in recent BQSP studies, investigations, seminars and workshops. You can read the latest newsletter here on the BQSP web site, or you can subscribe to the newsletter by entering your email address below, and receive each issue as it is published.
National Standards Bodies in the 21st Century
This article is adapted from the introduction to ‘National Standards Bodies in the 21st Century’ a guide to be published shortly by ISO/UNIDO jointly. The author, Mr Peter Bonner, a recognised authority on the management of standards bodies, and ex-director of the British Standards Institute, is the UNIDO International Consultant on SMTQ for the Quality Management Systems sub-component of BQSP.
The publication of ‘National Standards Bodies in the 21st Century’ represents an updating and broadening of ISO Manual 1 “Establishment and Management of a National Standards Body”. It covers the main principles of Standardization at national, regional and international level and illustrates the various structures that exist to manage the process at national level. It encapsulates the experience of ISO DEVCO in dealing with developing countries and draws upon the work of UNIDO’S forty years in helping to establish and upgrade NSBs and the quality Infrastructure in developing countries.
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What is Quality Management?
Contributed by Mr K M Mostafa Anwar, National Project Coordinator, Quality Management System Component of the Bangladesh Quality Support Programme (BQSP)
What is Quality?
Quality is the degree to which the needs and expectations are met, properties of an object in relation to needs and expectations of the user of the products or the services. The term quality is used quite often in our daily life. What do we mean with the official definition? Is something more expensive always of more quality? What seems to concern is if a product or service gives that what you as a customer expect of it. Price doesn't say anything about quality. The important thing is that a product gives that what a customer expects.
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Quality Management System as per ISO 9000
Contributed by Mr K M Mostafa Anwar, National Project Coordinator, Quality Management System Component of the Bangladesh Quality Support Programme (BQSP)
ISO 9000 Series
In 1987 the International Standards Organization (ISO) published the first edition standards of the so-called ISO 9000 series for quality management:
- three standards for external quality assurance: ISO 9001, ISO 9002 and ISO 9003 with requirements that can serve as a basis for certification;
- a guide for setting up internal quality management, ISO 9004;
a guide for applying these standards: ISO 9000.
Summary of the Status of the Shrimp Sector in Bangladesh: A Review
Contributed by Dr. Md. Kamal, National Consultant, BQSP- Fisheries, UNIDO, and Ms Maliha Naureen, School of Environmental Science & Management Independent University, Bangladesh
Shrimp culture in Bangladesh has emerged as a big industry over the last three decades although shrimp culture in greater parts of the farming area is done in traditional ways. Bangladesh government has also taken necessary measures along with the private sectors to increase production, upgrading processing industries and to promote export performance. Long supply chain of raw material collection, inadequate infrastructure facilities, poor level of maintaining cool chain and lack of adequate HACCP based training on hygiene and sanitation among the different people involved in field level are the main problems of quality loss of raw materials. Shortage of raw materials resulted poor capacity utilization of the processing plants. The bagda (P. monodon) hatchery sector has expanded rapidly over the last few years mostly concentrated in Cox’s Bazar region is enough to meet the target production. However, there is a shortage of pelleted shrimp feed in Bangladesh.
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Developing Value Added Fishery Products in Bangladesh
Contributed by K. R. Hasan, National Project Coordinator, Fisheries component of the Bangladesh Quality Support Programme (BQSP)
Status of Fish and Shrimp Processing Industry:
Bangladesh at the time of its independence in 1971 had only 15 fish processing plants. The number of processing plants had increased to 145 by 2006. The unplanned growth of such plants exceeded the potential of raw materials resources encouraging unhealthy competitions amongst the processors, thus resulting in loss of quality and international marketing good will. Moreover, due to a ban by the European Union (EU) in 1997 many plants went out of operation. So far 72 Processing plants were issued license by Department of Fisheries (DOF) after modernization until 2006, out of which 60 plants are EU approved. About 20-25 (30%) plants are involved in production and export of value added fish and shrimp products and more plants are likely to go for product diversification in near future.
View BQSP Newsletter5
Implementation Strategy of Traceability in Shrim Value Chains in Bangladesh
Background
Shrimp culture plays very important role in Bangladesh particularly in the contest of export earning.. Shrimp culture started in the costal district of Satkhira in 1960s. Gradually its culture expanded to the coastal belts of Khulna, Bagerhat, Cox’s Bazar and Chittagong and now the area under shrimp culture has increased from 52,000 ha in 1982-83 to 141,000 ha in 1999-00. About 75% of this land is located in the Khulna, Bagerhat and Satkhira districts in the south-eastern region of the country. Penaeus monodon and Machrobrachium rosenbergii are the two major species cultured in Bangladesh. There are now approximately 37,397 bagda farms ( P. monodon) with an average farm size of 4.5 ha. Bagda production has increased by 20% per annum in the last fifteen years. There are also 30,000 ha of land under galda ( M. rosenbergii) culture with an average farm size of 0.28 to 4 ha comprising 105,000 galda farms, located mostly in Khulna division. An estimate showed that total shrimp production in 2003-04 was 114,660 MT (DOF, 2005) as against the production of 30,000 MT in 1995. It alone contributes more than 70% of the total export earning from all the agro-based products, including tea, raw jute, vegetables, fruit, etc. The shrimp industry also provides direct employment to over 600,000 people who in turn support well over 3.5 million dependents. The export performance in shrimp industries is indeed highly appreciable. In 1973, the export earnings were US$ 3.17 million, which stands at US$ 420million in 2004- 05 financial year by exporting 63,377 MT shrimp and other fishery products, in which shrimp alone contributed 89% of the total export in spite of having a severe price fluctuation in the international market(BFFEA, 2006).
Horticulture & Agro-processed Foods Sectors Stakeholders Develop Strategy for Exports
The Horticulture and Agro-Processed foods sectors of Bangladesh have designed a comprehensive export strategy to successfully penetrate selected international markets and to establish sustainable and profitable exportable products.
Stakeholders from each sector, including farmers, sector enterprises, sector associations, government agencies, trade promotion institutions and other international development agencies followed a structured practical process co-facilitated by the International Trade Centre (UNCTAD/WTO) and the Export Promotion Bureau (EPB).education.
View BQSP Newsletter 4
Sandwich Training Programmes at Diploma Level
Sandwich Training means that normal (and thus paid) working in a mill alternates with teaching in a school, institute or college. Due to the quick transfer of theoretical knowledge into work practice, and vice versa the explanation in the school of things which were just experienced in a mill, a more sustainable and deeper understanding as well as a more advanced know how can be much quicker established than in conventional education.
Designing Strategies for Developing the Horticulture and Agro-processed Foods Sectors
There are tremendous opportunities for horticulture and associated Agro-processed food products from Bangladesh, both for internal consumption and export markets.
Launching of the Bangladesh Packaging Working Group
Key representatives from the Bangladeshi packaging industry met with the Export Promotion Bureau (EPB) and ITC in Dhaka to announce the official creation of the Bangladesh Packaging Working Group (BPWG). The BPWG formalizes the desire of the different sub-sectors of the packaging industry to team up with EPB and ITC.
Improving the Quality of Fish Products
The government is intensifying its efforts to strengthen the inspection and quality control service in fisheries sector under a project with the financial support of the European Union (EU). Country's frozen food export and sustain the industry in the competitive international market.
RMG Distribution Channels in the EU
Distribution channels differ greatly across the EU member states. The UK has a high concentration of distribution, which is reflected in the relatively low market share of independent retailers. The southern member states, Portugal, Italy and Spain, however, have high market shares for independent retailers.
View BQSP Newsletter 3.pdf
A Busy First Year for BQSP
The first twelve months of BQSP (six months inception phase, and the first six months of planned implementation) was completed in December 2006. Inception activities were completed rapidly and implementation begn in parallel, early in the year..
Accreditation in Developing Countries
During the first year of BQSP, the act creating the Bangladesh Accreditation Board (BAB) was passed. With assistance from UNIDO, the provisions of the act are being implemented, and BAB has commenced operations.
The Consumers’ Association of Bangladesh
Consumer International (CI), the worldwide alliance of national consumer representative organizations was invited by UNIDO to visit Bangladesh to assist the Consumer Association of Bangladesh and BQSP to plan and organize the development of the association to be more effective in protecting consumers’ rights in Bangladesh. The following article is an extract from their report.
Accreditation and National Systems for Conformity Assessment: A Vision for Bangladesh
Article submitted by Mr. Mostafa Anwar, National Project Coordinator, QMS Component of BQSP.
“If you cannot measure, you cannot improve” is a well-known adage in engineering. Measurements are done in laboratories. Laboratories provide test and measurement results for many purposes - calibration, determining product quality, quality control of manufacturing, compliance with, laws and regulations etc. The reliability, validity and acceptance of those tests and measurements are essential if decisions are to be made on their applications. Accreditation provides a mechanism to provide confidence in the technical competence of the laboratories. Similarly, accreditation can be applied to the other activities broadly referred to as, “conformity assessment” such as certification and inspection to give increased confidence in those activities.
A Close Look at RMG Industry's Marketing Tools and Threats
Article submitted by Mr. Luigi Bertorelli, International Coordinator, Textile/RMG Component of BQSP, published in “The Daily Star” on 4 November 2006.
The readymade garment industry is a key sector in the Bangladeshi economy, With its population totaled 453.7 million and an average GDP per capita amounted to approximately 25,000 euros the EU Members States are among others the higher buyers and bigger consumers of the garments produced in Bangladesh, It is worth to have a close look at the marketing tools and threats the manufactures and exporters have to face to increase their volumes and turn-over.
“Needs Assessment for Strengthening Bangladesh Primary Textile & RMG Industry (Training, Research, Design, Testing and Consultancy Needs)”
The study, conducted in 2006, was commissioned by UNIDO under the Textiles/RMG project of BQSP. The study was designed to identify the needs of the sector for training in the technical, production management and marketing areas, and for other support services.
Upgrading the Dyeing and Finishing Department at NITTRAD
Professor Volker Rossbach, Professor of Textile Chemistry, Finishing, and Fibrous Materials at the Technical University of Dresden, and UNIDO international consultant on textile dyeing and finishing, visited Bangladesh in August 2006.
Bangladesh delegation to visit the
London College of Fashion, University of the Arts
A delegation led by Mr. Feroz Ahmed, Secretary Ministry of Commerce will depart for London on 5 November 2006 for London for a five days visit to the London College of Fashion, University of the Arts (LCF).
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