Quality council to position Jamaica as trusted producer of goods and services

JAMAICA’S National Quality Council is to move quickly to develop a six-month action plan aimed at accelerating policy revision, strengthening coordination among agencies, and ensuring measurable impact aligned with national priorities, including Vision 2030 Jamaica and the broader industrial and export growth agenda.

This was one of the major decisions made at the first meeting of the council for 2026.

Chairman of the council, minister of state in the Ministry of Industry, Investment and Commerce Delano Seiveright told the Jamaica Observer that the meeting was used to set a clear, execution-focused direction for strengthening Jamaica’s national quality framework as a cornerstone of productivity, competitiveness and consumer protection.

“The meeting centred on advancing implementation of Jamaica’s National Quality Policy (NQP) 2019 and positioning the council to lead a more streamlined, coordinated, and results-driven approach to quality governance. Discussions focused on sharpening policy goals and strategies, improving institutional coordination, and clarifying roles and responsibilities across the national quality architecture to reduce overlaps and improve implementation efficiency,” said Seiveright.

He added that the council’s work will be firmly anchored in modernising Jamaica’s National Quality Infrastructure (NQI) to better support economic transformation, enhance global competitiveness, and embed a sustained national culture of quality across the public and private sectors.

“Quality is not a theoretical exercise. It is fundamental to growth, trade and credibility. The council is focused on delivery, ensuring that our standards, accreditation, certification and regulatory systems actively support businesses — particularly micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs) — as Jamaica competes in more demanding markets,” Seiveright told the Observer.

He said in keeping with its agenda, the council reviewed agency updates on the implementation of the NQP, including progress by the Bureau of Standards Jamaica (BSJ), the Jamaica National Agency for Accreditation (JANAAC), the National Certification Body of Jamaica (NCBJ), and the National Compliance and Regulatory Authority (NCRA), all of which are portfolio agencies under the so-called “Business Ministry”.

According to Seiveright, these efforts have contributed to increasing exports, strengthening conformity-assessment services, and improving the international acceptance of Jamaican goods and services.

The state minister said the meeting also took account of notable gains across the quality system in recent years, including expanded laboratory accreditation, increased access to certification and testing services, and the roll-out of ISO 9001 certification across the public sector — measures that are improving efficiency, service delivery and the overall business environment.

“Discussions further addressed the council’s role in the Government’s building back better agenda, the incorporation of stakeholder feedback into ongoing policy refinement, and the need to ensure the quality framework keeps pace with emerging priorities such as digital transformation, artificial intelligence, and e-commerce.

“A modern, credible, and well-coordinated quality system is essential to sustainable development and investor confidence,” Seiveright said.

He declared that, “The National Quality Council will be disciplined, strategic and outcomes-driven in delivering that mandate.”

Seiveright added that the council will continue structured engagement with public and private sector stakeholders as it advances the revised National Quality Policy and strengthens Jamaica’s position as a trusted producer of quality goods and services.

Source: Jamaica Observer