This archive report was first published on 10 May 2021.
On May 10, 2021, the Kenya Bureau of Standards (KEBS) took a crucial step to strengthen the resilience and continuity of businesses and organisations in Kenya.
The KEBS approved two new standards on management practices, Kenya Standards KS ISO 22301:2019 and KS ISO 22392:2020, aimed at enhancing organisations' ability to recognise and adapt to disruptive changes in their environment.
The move comes as the COVID-19 pandemic continues to have a devastating impact on the Kenyan economy, with 1.7 million people rendered jobless, according to the Kenya National Bureau Statistics (KNBS).
"These standards will help organisations identify opportunities and threats arising from internal and external changes, and respond to them as we have seen with the COVID-19 pandemic," said Bernard Njiraini, Managing Director of KEBS.
Business continuity has become increasingly important for organisations seeking to quickly resume services in the event of a major disruption, such as the COVID-19 pandemic, which has affected various sectors of the Kenyan economy, including tourism, trade, transport, real estate, and financial services.
"The standards outline requirements for implementing, maintaining, and improving Business Continuity Management Systems (BCMS) to reduce the likelihood of disruptions and prepare for, respond to, and recover from them," added Njiraini.
