Nokia to train Kebs on detecting counterfeits

By James Ratemo

Trade in counterfeit products is still raging on in the country in the face of weak anti-counterfeit laws, a dormant anti-counterfeit agency and a porous border.

Now manufacturers are calling for strict enforcement of anti-counterfeit measures to curb trade in counterfeits and consolidate economic growth.

To fight counterfeits in the market, Nokia, a leading mobile phone manufacturer, has set out a plan to train Kenya Bureau of Standards officials on how to detect counterfeits at the point of entry.

"Counterfeiting is a serious crime because it robs consumers, governments and rights owners. It also poses life threatening dangers to consumers," said Gerard Brandjes, the General Manager for Nokia East and Southern Africa.

Despite zero-rating mobile phones in the last national budget, The Standard survey shows unscrupulous traders still flooding the market with sub-standard handsets and other electronics.

According to the International Anti-Counterfeiting Coalition, counterfeiting is "a $600 billion a year problem" and a "problem that has grown 10,000 per cent in 20 years."

The figures show the enormous size of the problem and the need for Government to act tough.

Brandjes said unscrupulous traders were taking advantage of the dormant Kenya Anti-counterfeit Agency to flood the market with sub-standard goods.

Recent research has shown that increase in mobile phone penetration, especially in developing countries, had a direct bearing on a country’s GDP, but the gains are being eroded by the proliferation of counterfeits in the market.

　

　

 

 

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