– Livan
THE Land Management Department of Guyana Geology and Mines Commission (GGMC) has been assessed and certified as having met the requirements of (International Standards Organisation) ISO 9001:2008 benchmarks.
The March 22, 2011 certificate said the management system of that department is authorised to grant permissions, licences and permits for geological and geophysical surveys, mining, quarry and prospecting licences, medium scale prospecting and mining permits.
The ISO certification is valid from March 22, 2011 through March 22, 2014 and maintained that status subject to satisfactory surveillance audits, said Mr. Zachary C. Pavnik, Director of Accreditation, SGS North American Inc. Systems and Services Certification, New Jersey, United States (U.S.). A recertification audit is due a minimum of 60 days before the expiration date.
Making the disclosure last week, GGMC Acting Commissioner, Mrs. Karen Livan explained that the management of exploration and mining properties in the six mining districts of Guyana is a vital aspect of the agency’s work and is done by the Land Management Department.
She said: “ISO 9001 is the internationally recognised standard for the quality management of businesses. It applies mainly to the process that creates the products and services that an organisation supplies. It also has to do with a systematic approach to management, enhanced customer service and continual improvement of performance.”
Livan said the achievement means that the work of the Land Management Department is now seen as being in conformity with international consensus on best practices in management systems.
“It represents international acceptance of the way we operate,” she clarified.
Livan added that it is significant because, when foreign companies and, even local ones, scrutinise the department, they must have no doubts about its approaches and the things it does. It leads to investor friendliness and other investment attractions.
ISO Standards ensure desirable characteristics of products and services, such as quality, environmental friendliness, safety, reliability, efficiency and interchangeability, at an economical cost.
The ISO certification signals that a management system includes all the requirements in processes and information organisation. Consequently, the customer will experience benefits such as reduced waiting time, strict confidentiality, improved relations and the assurance and confidence that the service at GGMC is hassle free and the best that can be offered, Livan said.

Landmark
Flanked by other GGMC staffers, including  Human Resources and Administration Manager, Ms. Adele Butts and Manager, Audit Department, Mr. Arthur Gibbs, she
said ISO certification is a landmark achievement for the agency, which it won by means of hard work from late 2008 to its successful acquisition on March 22.
GGMC had also received very valuable inputs from a consultant and local auditors, who had previous experience in working for the ISO, Livan said.
She said the thrust for ISO 9001: 2008 was initiated and managed to fruition by the recently retired GGMC Commissioner, Mr. William Woolford.
Livan said, among some of the benefits accrued in the quest were reductions in cycle time and cost, the number of errors and defects, changes in organisational culture, improvements in productivity, service and customer relations.
She said, too, that although the quest was for certification of the Land Management Department, the Senior Management team working on it had sought to infuse the principles of ISO right across the GGMC.
“We publicised, throughout the Commission, our quality policy statement. We introduced all staff to the ISO Quality Mangement Systems (QMS) and strove to build awareness of the importance of customer expectations and satifisfaction, meeting targets and objectives and management based on fact and continual improvement and so on,” Livan outlined.
She cautioned that the ISO achievement does not mean that the Land
Management Department can now rest on its laurels.
“There is a requirement for continual improvement. So we have to, continuously, review our QMS against the goals and targets set. We also have to develop our in-house capacity to do audits because they have to be done on an ongoing basis, to ensure that the standards are being maintained. We will always, have to be doing surveys to see how satisfied our customers are. Lapses into complacency can lead to the certification being revoked long before the three-year period is up,” Livan warned.
She said GGMC intends to expand the scope of its QMS to include its Field Monitoring Regulation and Mines Administration processes, with the aim of having them covered, as well, by ISO 9001:2008 certification, resulting in enhanced transparency and accountability.