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Quality Champions Programme Successfully Concluded

In December 2021, EAC-EU MARKUP through ITC concluded the Quality Champions (QCs) training. More than 80 experts across the EAC have graduated from this training and are now certified Quality Champions. This marks a successful end to an exciting journey that began in 2019. The experts are now fully equipped and ready to support SMEs to tackle a wide range of challenges in order to improve quality and efficiency.

The 80 certified Quality Champions underwent a rigorous curriculum that lasted two and a half years and included the basics of Quality Management such as:

  • Understanding the concept of quality and the content of quality products and services
  • Quality assurance, control, improvement, planning, management
  • Structured Problem Solving and other soft skills
  • International Market Access Requirements
  • The global standards and quality architecture, including through the World Trade Organisation (WTO) and Codex Alimentarius
  • Global GAP, Good Manufacturing Practices (GMP) and many more.

As part of the qualification, the quality champions were assigned to a company where they offered coaching and training, and undertook a quality improvement project under the supervision of international experts. These projects typically focused on increasing efficiency of production, reducing waste, ensuring consistent quality, and complying with market standard requirements.

A representative of Mt Elgon Agroforestry Communities Cooperative Enterprise Ltd in Uganda describes how much his company has benefited from the Quality Champion deployed to their company: ‘By the end of the project the company had improved in several areas and the following were the successes attained; (i) SOPs for coffee management were developed; (ii) Training materials for Good Agricultural Practices and Management of coffee gardens were developed; (iii) the quality controller attended a coffee quality management training session; (iv) A quality assurance policy was developed; (vi) A HACCP manual was developed and is now under implementation. With the support of the QC Coach, the company acquired investment worth USD 100,000 from Root Capital.