By Mary Poni
The South Sudan National Bureau of Standards (SSBNS) has been urged to prioritize the economic and health wellbeing of its citizens as the country joined the rest of the World to celebrate the World Standards Day.
The Vice President for Economic Cluster, Dr. James Wani Igga stressed the need for perfect policies of economic development that seek to improve the economic wellbeing of the people in the Country.
Dr. Igga spoke yesterday during the celebration of the World Standards Day under the theme “standard sustainable development Goals.”
He stated that the national bureau of standards needs to improve the economic wellbeing of the citizens as well as enhancing quality lives of the communities by creating jobs and supporting or growing incomes and the tax base.
Dr. Igga noted that it is extremely essential to link the South Sudan National Bureau of Standards to economic development because it will all end up at economic development of the people in the country which is the development of an economic wealth of a country for the wellbeing of the citizens.
“Our understanding of this analysis is that, the term economic development implies improvement in variety of indicators such as the literacy rate must improve, life expectancy must improve or go higher, poverty rate must decline and many others,” he said.
He lamented that they are to execute the sustainable development goals guarded by an ideal which is the Bureau of Standards.
He stated that through monetary and fiscal policies, regulation of financial institutions are some of the fundamentals in economic development including trade and tax policies, programs to providing infrastructure and services like highways, feeder roads, affordable schools, hospitals among others.
Dr. Igga emphasized that the policies and programs are directed at job creation like small business development, business expansion and technology transfer.
“If we have to realize the sustainable development goals in good economic environment, we must over hold and correctly define what a national burau of standards is all about” he proclaimed.
According to the Minister of Labor, James Hoth Mai, the standards of the sustainable development is not just a development but also the bureau of standards being responsible for the lives of people.
He stressed that the South Sudan National Bureau of Standards is the frontline of whatsoever things that people are doing.
“We are also seeing what we consume especially the food that we buy from the market have to be standard in a way that can attract the public,” he stated.
The minister cited that what is called bread in South Sudan is not actually the bread people know and meant because the ones produced nowadays are very small and SSNBS should take concern on the matter.
Minister Hoth said the National Bureau of Standards is supposed to regulate it because it is not up to the citizens to put what they like as it’s the SSNBS mandate to make sure that people are safe and health such that they can be able to develop the Country.
“If we are talking of sustainable development, everything we do here including the machines are made by human beings,” Hoth underscored.
He appealed to SSNBS that with all the challenges they have, they should make sure that the people of South Sudan are safe and in good health, saying it’s a priority and very important to purely save the citizens.