Accreditation was meant to be a public-interest function—rooted in competence, independence, and trust. Today, under the watch of ILAC, IAF, APAC and other regional cooperation bodies, it has been reduced to a legal-identity game.
Sole proprietorships, partnerships, and private limited companies—driven by profit, not public accountability—are now freely opening “accreditation bodies,” obtaining regional membership, and ultimately signing the ILAC/IAF MRA. What was once a symbol of global trust has turned into a commercial logo, indistinguishable from roadside certification sales.
The most alarming part is the silence.
UNIDO, WTO and other international development organizations, which promote quality infrastructure in developing economies, remain mute spectators. ISO technical committees conveniently wash their hands by writing standards that say “any legal entity” can become an accreditation body—without addressing ownership, conflict of interest, or profit-driven risks. Regional cooperations then exploit this loophole, focusing on expansion, numbers, and membership fees rather than integrity.
This is no longer accreditation.
This is franchising trust.
Unless ILAC, IAF and regional bodies urgently redefine eligibility, ownership models, and public-interest safeguards, accreditation will lose all moral and technical authority. When anyone can sell accreditation like tea at a roadside stall, the joke is not on quality professionals—the joke is on the global quality infrastructure itself.
ISO – International Organization for Standardization
International Laboratory Accreditation Co-operation (ILAC)
International Accreditation Forum Inc
Quality Council of India(QCI)
European co-operation for Accreditation (EA)
IEC (International Electrotechnical Commission)
iso #ilac #apac #quality #acceditaion
ansi #anab #nata #ukas
About the Author
Dr. Sambhu Chakraborty is a distinguished consultant in quality accreditation for laboratories and hospitals. With a leadership portfolio that includes directorial roles in two laboratory organizations and a consulting firm, as well as chairman of International Organization of Laboratories ( An ILAC stakeholder organisation), Dr. Chakraborty is a respected voice in the field. For further engagement or inquiries, Dr. Chakraborty can be contacted through email at info@sambhuchakraborty.com and contact information are available on his websites,https://www.quality-pathshala.com and https://www.sambhuchakraborty.com , or via WhatsApp at +919830051583