How to add quality into your supplier development programme
Part 1
How do you determine the validity of BEE certificates for a procurement exercise in preparation for your BBBEE Audit:
• If the financial year that is being measured begins any time after the 7th February 2011 then each and every BEE certificate that is used in determining the score on a procurement scorecard must be issued by a SANAS accredited Verification Agency unless the certificate is for an EME and meets the applicable rules per Code Series 000
• If the financial year that is being measured ends before the 8th February 2011 then all certificates issued prior to 9th February 2010 will be accepted regardless of the issuing agencies accreditation status but subject to expiry (see below). If the certificate is issued after 9th February 2010 then it must be SANAS accredited, unless the certificate is for an EME and meets the rules per Code Series 000
• Regardless of SANAS accreditation the validity of either a SANAS accredited certificate, EME or Non SANAS accredited BEE certificate will be governed as follows:
1. The certificate is valid if it has either been issued within the financial year you are measuring or expires within the financial year you are measuring.
2. If you receive a certificate issued after the end of the financial year you are measuring then the certificate may not be accepted by your verification agency, or, maybe accepted subject to certain other rules.
To summarize, if you have received a valid BEE certificate which expires on the 20th February 2012. The certificate issued to you remains valid for your BEE procurement scorecard for a period up until the end of any financial year which includes the 20th February 2012. This means that if your financial year end is December, as an example, and your BEE measurement period is your financial period, then the certificate you have on hand from your supplier will be valid up until Financial Year end 31 December 2012.
Given the above rules, as can be confirmed with most verification agencies and SANAS, the supplier then need only provide you with a valid certificate again on the 31st December 2013. While this is a stretch only to illustrate the point it is still a practicable example.