OREANDA-NEWS. On 02 June 2009 was announced, that the State Standardization Committee of Belarus rules out unfair certification, the deputy chairman of the committee, Viktor Nazarenko, told a news conference.

Belarus has around 2,500 laboratories, and entities taking out certificates are enabled to choose any of them. “There are no monopolies, and there is no way anyone can buy a certificate or have a simplified certification procedure. We tend to simplify certification procedures, but we have introduced more serious requirements for laboratories. The agencies that show incompetence or lack of objectivity may be disallowed to provide certification services,” Nazarenko said.

As a result of the recent reform the number of activities subject to certification has been cut by 40%. On March 20, 2009, the committee abolished certification of tour operators' services and paint and glazing work in construction.

Commenting on the economic effect of the partial abolition of certification, he said the state aimed at protecting its citizens from poor quality products, so there were no plans to completely abolish certification.