Accreditation Officer -Testing at Kenya Accreditation Service (KENAS)

Job Description

• The Kenya Accreditation Service (KENAS or the Service) is a State Corporation established under Section 4 of the Kenya Accreditation Service Act2019 (Act No. 17 of 2019) as the national accreditation body for Kenya. Its mandate is to accredit and exercise oversight over conformity assessment service providers across a plurality of economic sectors and to maintain an internationally recognized accreditation system.
• The Accreditation Officer- Testing shall be responsible to the Principal Accreditation Officer -Testing Laboratories tasked for the implementation of the accreditation processes in accordance with established standards, policies, and procedures in the Testing Laboratories Department.

Roles

• Implements procedures for maintenance of an internationally recognized management system for accreditation.
• Implements programs that advance uptake of accreditation for the facilitation of trade, enhancement of safety and environmental protection, economic performance, and transformation of Kenya.
• Acts as a team leader and/or technical assessor where appropriate in accordance with KENAS procedures.
• Coordinates and facilitates the work of assessment teams in line with KENAS quality management system as assigned.
• Contributes and participates in technical committees and working groups to enhance KENAS influence in shaping national, regional, and international documents, standards and regulations relating to Testing Laboratories.
• Works in line with departmental work plans in the Testing laboratory department
• Submits individual monthly, quarterly, and annual performance reports.
• Prepares and processes client files for accreditation decision making.
• Develops materials for promoting the use of regional and international accreditation marks on certificates or reports issued by conformity assessment bodies.
• Assists with reviewing of outputs and provides quality control for assessments to ensure that the service provided follows KENAS assessment policies, procedure, and guidelines.
• Drafts criteria documents, technical procedures, proposals, and publications.
• Acts as a focal point for assigned clients and enhance client relationships throughout the accreditation cycle in accordance with KENAS procedures and requirements of the appropriate accreditation standards.
• Drafts a register of accredited conformity assessment bodies for the Testing laboratory department.
• Proposes comments on ballots and the development of national position on national, regional, and international documents, standards and regulations relating to testing laboratories.
• Undertakes activities in line with operational budgets for the testing department.
• Manages the accreditation process for of assigned clients to ensure that assessments are effectively managed with completion meeting defined timelines, including the production and delivery of assessment reports.
• Administers client’s feedback on accreditation.
• Provides feedback on monitoring of assessors.

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree in science related fields from a recognized institution.
• Proficiency in Computer application; and
• Fulfil the requirement of Chapter Six (6) of the Constitution.

Other Qualifications
Successful candidates after interviews will be required to satisfy the requirements of Chapter Six of the Constitution of Kenya by submitting compliance or clearance certificates from the following institutions:

• Certificate of good conduct from the Directorate of Criminal Investigations (DCI)
• Tax Compliance Certificate from Kenya Revenue Authority (KRA)
• Clearance Certificate from Higher Education Loans Board (HELB)
• Clearance from Ethics and Anti-Corruption Commission (EACC)
• Clearance Certificate from a Credit Reference Bureau (CRB)
• Commission for University Education (CUE)-Recognition and Equation of Qualification for degrees obtained from outside Kenya.
• In addition, shortlisted candidates after interview will be required to give consent, allowing the Service to carry out a background verification of the documents presented.