ABU DHABI, April 26,2021: The Abu Dhabi Quality and Conformity Council (QCC) carried out inspection of 292,968 products from across various industry verticals and infrastructure sector by visiting sales and commercial outlets in Abu Dhabi between 2017 and the first quarter of 2021.
The inspections by the Markets and Consumer Services sector of QCC also covered 4,018 products offered on online platforms, a statement from the Council said, adding that in the first quarter of 2021, inspections on 22,247 products were conducted while in 2020 this was to the tune of 72,629 products.
QCC said such inspection campaigns aimed at consumer protection and to ensure safety of products and accuracy of legal scales used so that fair market norms were maintained.
Electrical appliances topped the list of QCC inspections at 91,857 products, followed by 79,071 children's toys and over 70,000 tobacco and cigarette products. Other products included detergents, vehicle tires and food materials.
Mr. Abdullah Ahmed Al-Yazidi, Executive Director of Strategic Affairs, QCC, said in a statement to the Emirates News Agency (WAM) on the World Intellectual Property Day, which falls on April 26 every year, that the field and digital inspections followed Abu Dhabi’s integrated framework strategy. Under this private sector entities also support the campaign according to the specialization of each, to address issues of non-conformity, fraudulent or counterfeit goods, thereby helping maintain market confidence and protect Intellectual Property Rights (IPRs), innovations and compliance to regulatory norms.
Al-Yazidi said the World Intellectual Property Day was an ideal opportunity to review Abu Dhabi’s pioneering efforts in cooperation with public and private sector to tackle counterfeit and false products so as to protect the IP rights of both local and global creators and inventors, and in turn empowering national industries and attracting investments for sustainable economic growth.
He stressed that QCC’s strategy was to support sustainable development and to strengthen Abu Dhabi's position as a global economic center as well as to build confidence in national products by creating quality and conformity systems aligned to global benchmarks.
Under the QCC’s framework to empower Abu Dhabi regulatory authorities by providing specifications, initiating conformity programs and developing quality infrastructure, a committee has been formed with public and private sector participation. The committee’s mandate is to maintain and ensure that the system of specifications and technical documents for regulatory requirements in Abu Dhabi were comprehensively maintained.
The Executive Director said QCC issued 14 guidelines in addition to 27 technical standards and 126 technical requirements applicable across vital industries, infrastructure and services in Abu Dhabi, providing a uniform reference of standards supporting Abu Dhabi government's vision.
QCC’s inspections aimed to ensure that the products met the mandatory norms, restricted products were not made available in the market, and products were certified for conformity and sufficient explanatory public information on products were provided.
Al-Yazidi said QCC aims to raise the quality of exports and locally traded products by developing a quality infrastructure and providing its services to partners and customers in Abu Dhabi. The Council provides a supportive framework to the regulatory authorities and the industrial sector in Abu Dhabi, and helps consolidate the emirate's economy while enhancing its openness to global markets.
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