Tanzania
Standards Act
Chapter 130
- Published in Tanzania Government Gazette
- Commenced on 15 April 1976
- [This is the version of this document at 31 July 2002.]
- [Note: This legislation has been thoroughly revised and consolidated under the supervision of the Attorney General's Office, in compliance with the Laws Revision Act No. 7 of 1994, the Revised Laws and Annual Revision Act (Chapter 356 (R.L.)), and the Interpretation of Laws and General Clauses Act No. 30 of 1972. This version is up-to-date as at 31st July 2002.]
Part I – Preliminary provisions (ss. 1-2)
1. Short title
This Act may be cited as the Standards Act.2. Interpretation
In this Act, unless the context requires otherwise—"Bureau" means the Tanzania Bureau of Standards established by section 3;"code of practice" means a set of rules relating to the method to be applied or the procedure to be adopted in connection with the construction, installation, testing, operation or use of any article, apparatus, instrument, device or process;"compulsory standard" means a standard which has been declared to be a compulsory standard under section 17;"Council" means the Executive Council of the Tanzania Bureau of Standards established by section 5;"Director" means the Director of the Bureau appointed under section 7;"Inspector" means an Inspector appointed under section 20;"mark" includes any device, brand, heading, label ticket, name, signature, word, letter or numeral, or any combination of them;"Minister" means the Minister responsible for matters relating to commerce and industry;"sell" includes barter and exchange, and exposure or offer for sale, and export for or in pursuance of sale, and have in possession for any purpose of sale, export, trade or manufacture;"specification" means a description of any commodity by reference to its nature, quality, strength, purity, composition, quantity, dimensions, weight, grade, durability, origin, age or other characteristics, or to any substance or material of or with which, or the manner in which, any commodity may be manufactured, produced, processed or treated;"standard" means a set of rules or conditions, approved, prescribed or recommended by the Bureau, which relate to or govern the specification, code of practice, safety, trade description, sampling method, testing method or any other aspect, quality, nature or matter of relating to or connected with—(a)the production or marketing of any commodity; or(b)any component, raw material, machinery, instrument, apparatus or other thing used, directly or indirectly, in the production or marketing of any commodity,and includes, in relation to metrology, provisions approved or prescribed by the Bureau relating to the fundamental unit or physical constant and the testing of instruments and apparatus used for the determination of weights and measures; and "standardisation" means the provision or promotion of standards;"standards mark" means a mark which has been approved and registered by the Bureau as mark denoting conformity to a standard.Part II – The Tanzania Bureau of Standards (ss. 3-8)
3. Establishment of the Bureau
4. Functions of the Bureau
5. Council
6. Powers and duties of Council
7. Director
8. Committees
Part III – Financial provisions (ss. 9-15)
9. Funds of the Bureau
The funds and resources of the Bureau shall consist of—10. Power to borrow
11. Annual and supplementary budget
12. Investment
With the prior approval of the Minister, the Council may from time to time, invest any part of the moneys available in any fund of the Bureau in investments authorised by the Trustees Investments Act1 for the investment of any trust fund.13. Accounts and audit
14. Director's report
The Director shall, at the end of each financial year, prepare a report on the activities of the Bureau during the financial year and submit that report to the Minister.15. Annual statement of accounts and report to be laid before National Assembly
The Minister shall, as soon as may be practicable after the close of a financial year lay before the National Assembly the following documents in relation to that financial year—Part IV – Establishment of standards (ss. 16-18)
16. Standards marks
17. Compulsory standard
18. Appeals
Any person who is aggrieved by—Part V – Enforcement provisions (ss. 19-25)
19. Samples and information
20. Appointment of inspectors
21. Powers of inspectors
22. Obstruction
Any person who resists, hinders or obstructs an Inspector acting pursuant to subsection (1) of section 21 or wilfully fails to comply with any requirement made of him under the said subsection shall be commits of an offence.23. General penalty
24. Where offence is committed by body corporate
Where any offence under this Act or any regulations made under it is committed by a body corporate then, as well as the body corporate, any person who, at the time of the commission of the offence, was concerned as a director or an officer, with the management of the affairs of such body corporate commits the offence and shall be liable to be proceeded against and punished accordingly, unless he proves to the satisfaction of the court that he had no knowledge and could not, by the exercise of reasonable diligence, have had knowledge of the commission of the offence.25. Liability of employer or principal
Where any offence under this Act or under any regulations made under it is committed by a person as an agent or employee then, as well as the agent or employee, the principal or employer shall be guilty of the offence and shall be liable to be proceeded against and punished accordingly unless he proves to the satisfaction of the court that he had no knowledge, and could not, by the exercise of reasonable diligence, have had knowledge, of the commission of the offence.Part VI – Miscellaneous provisions (ss. 26-32)
26. Minister may give directions to Council
The Minister may give the Council directions of a general specific nature and the Council shall give effect to every direction.27. Protection of Government, Bureau, Council and members and employees against claims in relation to standards marks
The fact that any commodity complies or is alleged to comply with a compulsory standard or has been or is alleged to have been manufactured, produced, processed or treated in accordance with that standard, or that a standards mark is used in connection with any commodity, shall not give rise to any claim against the Government, the Bureau or the Council or any of its members or employees.28. Protection of members of Council and officers of Bureau
29. Secrecy of information
Any person who is or has been engaged in the administration of this Act and who discloses, except for the purpose of the exercise of his functions or when required to do so by a court or under any written law, any information acquired by him in the exercise or purported exercise of his functions under this Act to any other person commits an offence and shall be liable to penalties prescribed by section 23.30. Prohibition of victimisation
31. Regulations
32. Fees and allowances
The Minister may, by directions under his hand, prescribe the fees and allowances payable to the members of the Council.History of this document
31 July 2002 this version
Consolidation
15 April 1976
Commenced
Documents citing this one 5
Legislation 3
1. | Surface and Marine Transport Regulatory Authority Act | 2 citations |
2. | Weight and Measures Act, 1982 | 1 citation |
3. | Centre for Agricultural Mechanisation and Rural Technology Act, 1981 |
Gazette 1
1. | Tanzania Government Gazette supplement number 11 dated 2019-03-15 number 11 |
Judgment 1
1. | Erythia Trading Co. Ltd vs Tanzania Bureau of Standards and Another (Commercial Case 137 of 2017) [2020] TZHCComD 12 (27 March 2020) |