Work on the Cape Verde Fish Product Laboratory, the first in West Africa to be accredited with an ISO 17,025 certificate, will begin this Friday, February 25. The laboratory’s physical installations are budgeted at 55,000,000 escudos and will be allocated to the National Fishing Development Institute (INDP).

Department of Fisheries director Adalberto Vieira affirms that the Fish Laboratory will be accredited with the ISSO 17,025 certificate, which certifies fish product laboratories all over the world.

“Cape Verde’s Fish Laboratory will be the only one in the African region accredited with the ISSO 17,025. This means that, in addition to serving Cape Verdean industries and businesses in the fishing sector, it will be able to work with all of the companies in the ECOWAS region,” says the official.

The contract for the construction of the laboratory, stresses Vieira, was signed with the Department of Infrastructures, immediately after which the disbursement of the first installment of the financing was requested from Spain. “The physical installations are budgeted at 55 million escudos, which will be paid by Cape Verde and the by the Spanish Cooperation Agency.”