Felix Koskei, Kenya’s Head of Public Service, has been appointed a Goodwill Ambassador for the African Organisation for Standardisation (ARSO), giving him a new continental role focused on trade and common standards.
The appointment was announced at an ARSO gala dinner in Mombasa on Thursday, during the organisation’s 32nd General Assembly. The meeting is being hosted in Kenya from August 24 to 28.
Koskei is the third African leader to hold the honor, according to ARSO records. He joins former Nigerian President Olusegun Obasanjo and former Mauritian President Ameenah Gurib-Fakim.
Koskei takes on a trade-focused role
Accepting the appointment, Koskei said he viewed it as more than a ceremonial position.
“I am humbled to be appointed Goodwill Ambassador of ARSO. I accept this responsibility with deep humility and a profound sense of duty,” he said.
He said he would use his position to promote standardisation and support efforts to make trade between African countries simpler.
ARSO was established in 1977 to harmonise standards and conformity assessment procedures across Africa. Its broader goal is to reduce technical barriers to trade and encourage commerce within the continent.
Koskei said the continent’s large consumer market presented significant opportunities, but that businesses still faced obstacles when moving goods across borders.
Different product requirements, repeated inspections and certification procedures can add to the cost of doing business, particularly for smaller companies.
The push for ‘One Certificate’
At the center of the Mombasa meeting was ARSO’s “One Certificate” agenda.
The idea is straightforward: goods certified to agreed African standards in one country should be able to enter another market without going through unnecessary rounds of testing and certification.
Koskei said this would be especially important for farmers, manufacturers and small businesses seeking to reach consumers beyond their home markets.
“Standards do more than ensure compliance,” he said. “They help our farmers reach new markets, enable our manufacturers to trade across borders and position African products to compete globally.”
The initiative is closely linked to the African Continental Free Trade Area, which seeks to create a single market across the continent.
ARSO says harmonized standards can help remove some of the technical barriers that stand between African producers and regional markets.
Kenya backs wider African trade
Industrialization Principal Secretary Juma Mukwana said the discussions in Mombasa showed a shared commitment among African countries to reduce technical barriers.
He pointed to initiatives including the ARSO Conformity Assessment Program and the ARSO Quality Mark as part of efforts to improve the movement of goods and services.
Kenya Bureau of Standards managing director Esther Ngari described standards as a kind of passport for African products.
“By trading with each other, we will prosper,” she said.
Ngari also urged African countries to increase local value addition instead of relying heavily on imported finished products.
“We do not have to get products from Europe to come to Africa when we have the potential to do value addition in Africa and trade with each other,” she said.
A bigger test for African trade
The appointment comes as African governments try to turn the promise of continental free trade into something businesses can experience in practice.
The 32nd ARSO General Assembly, hosted by Kenya through KEBS, has brought together standards bodies, policymakers and industry representatives in Mombasa.
For traders, the success of the “One Certificate” approach will ultimately depend on whether countries recognize common standards and reduce duplicated checks.
For consumers, the potential benefits include greater access to African-made goods and stronger confidence in their quality.
Koskei said his new role would focus on building support for the agenda and turning mutual recognition of standards into a practical reality.
“I will use my role in public service to champion standardisation as an instrument of national competitiveness and advance the One Certificate agenda,” he said.
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