World Accreditation Day (WAD) is annually observed across the globe on 9 June to highlight the role of accreditation and conformity assessment in improving various aspects of life such as consumer safety, societal trust, business reliability, and governmental effectiveness.
- The theme for World Accreditation Day 2024 is ‘Accreditation: Empowering Tomorrow and Shaping the Future’.
Note: Accreditation is a review process that evaluates the quality of educational programs and institutions.
Background:
i.WAD is a global initiative established by the International Accreditation Forum (IAF) and the International Laboratory Accreditation Cooperation (ILAC) to highlight the value of accreditation in 2007.
ii.The 1st ever WAD was observed on 9th June 2008.
Significance:
i.WAD 2024 highlights the crucial role of accreditation in harnessing emerging opportunities and addressing global challenges.
ii.The 2024 observance examines the impact of accreditation as digitalisation, new technologies, and sustainability concerns continue to change the world.
iii.It also focused on how accreditation supports the United Nations (UN) Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) 6, 7, 8, 9, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15.
Key Points:
i.The 2024 WAD highlights that accreditation has long been a cornerstone of societal trust, now underpinning nearly every facet of daily life.
ii.Key issues addressed by accredited conformity assessment include:
- Supporting innovation and technical Advancement;
- Enabling new and digital technologies;
- Supporting a path to net zero;
- Promoting diversity and inclusion, ensuring fair practices within organizations;
- Facilitating a circular economy; and
- Ethical use of the Artificial Intelligence (AI).
iii.In each area, mutual recognition arrangements such as the IAF Multilateral Recognition Arrangement (MLA) and the ILAC Mutual Recognition Arrangement (ILAC MRA) help businesses operate across borders and industry boundaries.
Technological Standards:
i.The conformity assessment community, including IAF and ILAC, is adapting to technological changes.
ii.A key development is the International Organisation for Standardisation/the International Electrotechnical Commission ISO/IEC 42001 Information Technology (IT) — AI — Management System standard, published in December 2023.
- As the 1st global AI management system standard, it addresses transparency, accountability, and ethical considerations.
About International Laboratory Accreditation Cooperation (ILAC):
i.ILAC first started as a conference held on 24-28 October 1977 in Copenhagen, Denmark, to develop international cooperation for facilitating trade.
ii.In 1996, ILAC became a formal cooperation with a charter to establish a network of mutual recognition agreements among accreditation bodies.
iii.It is an international organisation for accreditation bodies operating by ISO/IEC 17011 and is involved in the accreditation of conformity assessment bodies.
Chair– Etty Feller
Headquarters– Silverwater, New South Wales, Australia
