Impartiality Policy

ABA personnel, at all levels, understand the importance of impartiality, managing conflicts of interest and ensuring the objectivity of its accreditation activities. ABA strives to avoid situations where a risk of impartiality arises, or a potential conflict of interest could exist.

For this reason, ABA is committed to the following principles:

ABA has a process to identify, analyze, evaluate, treat, monitor and document on an ongoing basis the risks to impartiality.

ABA makes the accreditation decisions such as granting, extending, suspending and withdrawing Accreditation, through an independent committee (Accreditation Committee) made up of members representing the relevant interested parties.

 ABA’s personnel involved in the accreditation process are required to declare that they are free from any undue commercial, financial or other pressures, which could affect their impartiality. Conflict of interest is addressed through binding agreements with personnel, to ensure that all activities are conducted in an independent and objective manner.

ABA is non-discriminatory and accepts applications from Conformity Assessment Bodies operating anywhere in the world that falls within the scope of ABA accreditation activities.

ABA does not provide consultancy or any other service that may affect its impartiality.

ABA guarantees its adherence to the principle of impartiality through internal audits, risk analysis, and the accreditation committee review.