Call for KPDNHEP to provide guidelines to ensure cloth face masks meet Sirim specifications
SEPANG: The Tourism, Arts and Culture Ministry (Motac) has asked the Domestic Trade and Consumer Affairs Ministry (KPDNHEP) to provide a guideline to ensure that patterned cloth face masks produced by craft entrepreneurs meet Sirim specifications.
Tourism, Arts and Culture Minister Datuk Seri Nancy Shukri said when the Covid-19 pandemic hit the country in 2020, Motac had encouraged craft entrepreneurs, especially single mothers and those from the B40 group, to sew cloth face masks that complied with World Health Organisation (WHO) standards.
“Motac will get further confirmation from KPDNHEP to help us provide guidance to craft entrepreneurs,” she told reporters after launching KUL Art Airport here yesterday.
On Thursday, KPDNHEP announced that the enforcement of the gazetted Trade Descriptions (Certification and Marking) of Non-Medical Face Mask Order 2022 under the Trade Descriptions Act 2011, would be postponed to Jan 1, 2023, instead of July 4 this year.
Under the law, non-medical grade face masks must have the MS Sirim certification and marking from Sirim QAS International Sdn Bhd.
Meanwhile, Nancy said a total of 252,730 travellers had been recorded as at April 4 since the country’s borders reopened on April 1.
On KUL Art Airport, she said it was an initiative of the National Art Gallery in collaboration with Malaysia Airports and supported by Motac with an allocation of almost RM600,000 in promoting the uniqueness of local artwork.
The artworks are being displayed at four international airports, namely Kuala Lumpur International Airport (KLIA), Penang International Airport (PIA), Kuching International Airport (KIA) and Kota Kinabalu International Airport (KKIA).