What is accreditation?

On top of certification, there is accreditation. Organisations like Kiwa that certify third parties are themselves formally accredited. Accreditation is provided by a so-called accreditation body, which is put in place by the government of a certain country. The accreditation process ensures that certification practices are acceptable, which means a certifier is competent to test and certify third parties, behaves ethically and employs suitable quality assurance. Kiwa has been accredited by various accreditation bodies for a wide variety of certification processes in many countries.