The Zambia Compulsory Standards Agency (ZCSA) has called for stronger collaboration between industry and academic institutions to improve product safety, quality, and compliance with national standards.
ZCSA Regional Manager for Domestic Quality Monitoring (South), Elias Kansembe, said enhanced cooperation among industry players, academia, and regulators is essential to closing persistent gaps identified by regulatory bodies and other stakeholders.
He made the remarks in Lusaka on Saturday (December 6, 2025) while representing ZCSA Executive Director Gerald Chizinga during a panel discussion at the inaugural Chemical Association of Zambia Indaba.
Mr. Kansembe noted that some of the challenges—particularly relating to the packaging of products—could be addressed more effectively through structured partnerships between producers, researchers, and regulators.
“We have cases of some producers packaging products without adhering to standards. These are issues that can be solved with enhanced collaboration between us regulators and academia,” he said.
He urged manufacturers whose products fall under compulsory standards to fully comply with all mandatory requirements before introducing goods onto the market, stressing that adherence to standards builds consumer confidence and enhances product acceptability both locally and internationally.
Mr. Kansembe added that consumers generally trust products that are safe, credible, and of good quality, and manufacturers must therefore meet the specific requirements of each applicable standard to prevent the risk of injury or harm to consumers and the environment.
He further emphasized that compliance is not optional: the Compulsory Standards Act No. 3 of 2017 legally obliges all producers and importers of regulated products to meet compulsory standards.
ZCSA—an agency under the Ministry of Commerce, Trade and Industry—was established under the Compulsory Standards Act to administer and enforce compliance with compulsory standards for the protection of public health, safety, consumers, and the environment.
The Agency currently regulates 102 locally manufactured and imported products, including food and beverages, chemical products, construction materials, packaging materials, household electrical appliances, petroleum products, fertilizers, and used textile products, among others.
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