KINGSTON, Jamaica – The Bureau of Standards Jamaica (BSJ) will join other national standards bodies around the globe on Saturday to commemorate World Standards Day 2023, under the theme ‘Shared Vision for a Better World: Incorporating SDG 3’.

This year’s celebration aims to increase the understanding of how standardisation is significant in achieving the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).

Manager, Communication and Customer Service at the BSJ, Maxine Fagan said this year’s theme “is an ongoing one from the previous World Standards Day, put together by the international organisation for standards”.

“Over the years, they have highlighted different SDGs, and this year they have chosen to focus on SDG 3 in particular,” she said.

The overarching aim of this goal is to ensure healthy lives and promote well-being for all ages.

While the day will be commemorated on October 14, the BSJ will undertake a slew of activities over a one-week period, starting with a church service at Webster Memorial United Church in Kingston at 7:30 am on Sunday, October 8.

Other activities will include the finals of their staff competition, several training sessions on good standardisation practices, and a webinar dubbed ‘Food Safety Impacting Health: Managing Food Allergens’.

Additionally, Fagan stated that “we will be having our ‘Open House’ event on Friday, October 13, where we will open our doors to the public. We will be having an exposition at the front of the building [featuring] various stakeholders and partners”.

Individuals interested in participating in the training sessions, webinar or any of the other activities, may reach out to the BSJ at (876) 632-4275 or visit their social media pages for further details.

“World Standards Day is really designed to highlight the benefits of standards and… one of the significant features of the day, why it was actually created, was to primarily recognise the contributions of experts who serve on technical committees that develop voluntary technical agreements, which are published as national and international standards,” Fagan said.

She added: “It’s [the day] really to highlight the work of these committee members and the significance and impact of standards across the world.”

-JIS