As Andile Tlhoaele, Chairperson of ABVA explains, "as of the 1st of August 2009, Verification Agencies (VA's) will not be allowed to accept the so called self-assessments as evidence for BEE procurement spend, and only Verification Agencies that are approved by SANAS will be allowed to issue Verification Certificates." 

Verification involves a process whereby a company's BEE status is assessed, verified and validated for compliance with the Codes and a score is duly awarded and presented in the form of a Verification Certificate. The process includes an analysis of the BEE procurement spend of a company by the VA. 

Tlhoaele elaborates further, "when performing this function, a Verification Agency can only accept verifiable evidence in the form of a Verification Certificate issued by Verification Agencies accredited by SANAS or in possession of a valid Pre-Assessment Letter from SANAS." 

After going through the verification process and receiving a certificate, companies will not repeatedly have to provide verifiable proof of their BEE status for tenders or to satisfy procurement officers. Instead, by being verified, businesses need only submit one certificate to potential clients, business partners or for tenders. 

On the other side, procurement officers do not have to receive and assess reams of documents for proof of BEE status when making procurement decisions, but rather can trust that the certificate is credible.

According to Tlhoaele, "verification therefore achieves a number of advantages; it allows procurement officers to be confident and it reduces the risk of fronting or misstatement of BBBEE status."

For more information or to find out which ABVA members can issue verification certificates, visit www.abva.co.za  and click on Approved Verification Agencies.