The Secretary General

Dr. Hermogene Nsengimana, since 2012 to date,  is the Secretary General of the African Organisation for Standardisation, ARSO, an intergovernmental Organisation which was formed by the African Union (AU, formerly OAU) and Economic Commission for Africa (UNECA) and with a membership of 38 African countries. Recruited by the ARSO Council, the Administrative arm of the Organisation, Dr Hermogene Nsengimana began his Career with ARSO in 2012. Steering ARSO to fulfil its Mandate of harmonising Standards and Conformity Assessment to reduce Technical Barriers to Trade and promote Intra-African and global Trade, Dr Nsengimana has demonstrated unrivalled and higher success at all key programmes of the Organisation, given his thorough understanding of the challenges of Technical Barriers to Trade issues in Africa and in World Trading systems, based on his wide knowledge of the World Trade Organisation TBTs Agreement (WTO TBT Agreement),. His demonstrated primary strength in the delivery of ARSO mandate is his visionary leadership with a deeper understanding of the letter and intent of the African Integration, Industrialisation and Transformation Agenda; the main African key blueprints of Lagos Plan of Action, Abuja Treaty and the African Agenda 2063, the African we Want.

Beyond his more than 20 years of service to Africa, half of which in leadership positions, and with a long-standing and clear track record with ability for delivery of results, Dr. Hermogene’s specific areas of Expertise is Corporate Governance; Strategic Planning and Execution; Team Management and mentorship; Programmes Monitoring, implementation and evaluation; Trade and Economic Policy analysis and implementation, with a bias towards African Economic and Trade Policy Agenda. He is highly skilled, with an expansive Knowledge, in Quality Infrastructure and its influence in the economic development of nations.   His in-depth grasp of its major components of Standardisation, Conformity Assessment, Metrology and Accreditation, and their interplay and how each affects trade and economies of nations of the world, is delightful. His analytical, mobilization and organizational skills are unparalleled.  

Leading in the implementation of key initiatives in his Career in ARSO, spanning 7 years, that has re-engineered and transformed the organization to a truly Continental Organisation with visibility and partnerships across the globe (including Europe, USA, Asia), and repositioned to play a key role in the ready-to-take-off African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA), and being the Chairperson of the Pan African Quality Infrastructure (PAQI), Dr, Nsengimana is an accomplished Standardisation expert who is well recognized as one of the youngest Leaders in the standardisation field in Africa and from around the world, influencing African Trade and economic policies.