Metrication Act


1988 Revised Edition






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METRICATION ACT

Metrication Act CAP. 52 Arrangement of Sections




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METRICATION ACT

Arrangement of Sections
Section
1 Short title..........................................................................................................5
2 Interpretation....................................................................................................5
3 Object of the Act..............................................................................................6
4 Application of Act. ..........................................................................................6
5 Committee........................................................................................................7
6 Functions of the Committee.............................................................................7
7 Employees of the Committee...........................................................................7
8 Income of the Committee.................................................................................7
9 Privy Council may amend Schedule. ...............................................................7
10 Regulations. .....................................................................................................7
11 Savings.............................................................................................................8


SCHEDULE I 9

UNITS.................................................................................................................9

SCHEDULE II 9
SCHEDULE III 10

DESCRIPTION OF UNITS ...............................................................................10

Metrication Act CAP. 52 Section 1




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METRICATION ACT

Acts 34 of 1978 and 22 of 1984

AN ACT TO PROVIDE FOR THE ADOPTION OF THE METRIC
SYSTEM OF MEASUREMENT

Commencement [28th September, 1979]

1 Short title.
This Act may be cited as the Metrication Act.

2 Interpretation.
In this Act unless the context otherwise requires: —

“Act” includes any regulation, rule, order, ordinance or other law;

“Appropriate Metric Statement of Quantity” means a statement of
quantity expressed by a simple number and a unit of the metric system of
measurement; (Inserted by Act 22 of 1984.)

“Committee” means the Metrication Committee established under
this Act;

“Legal Unit of Measurement” means a unit specified in accordance with
Section 5 of the Weights and Measures Act; (Inserted by Act 22 of 1984.)

“Metric System of Measurement” means measurement in terms of —

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(a) the units comprised in the International System of Units (SI) for the
time being approved by the General Conference on Weights and
Measures and as listed in Schedule I hereto;

(b) units decimally related to those units by the addition of one of the
prefixes for the time being approved by the General Conference on
Weights and Measures and as listed in Schedule II hereto;

(c) the units listed in Schedule III hereto;

“Minister” means the Minister responsible for Commerce or such
Minister as the Privy Council may appoint to be responsible for the time
being for the performance of duties under this Act; (Inserted by Act 22
of 1984.)

“Non-metric” means the same as in Section 2 of the Weights and
Measures Act; (Inserted by Act 22 of 1984.)

“Physical Quantity” includes —
(a) a quantity stated in terms of —

(i) two or more physical quantities referred to in association
with each other; or

(ii) one or more physical quantities referred to in association
with a stated amount of money; and

(b) a quantity expressed in terms of gauge, mesh or size in a context
which implies a statement of physical quantity;

“Statement of Quantity” means an expression of an exact value of a
physical quantity in terms of numbers and units of measurement. (Inserted
by Act 22 of 1984.)

3 Object of the Act.
The object of this Act is to bring about progressively the use of the metric
system of measurement in the Kingdom as the sole system of measurement of
physical quantities.

4 Application of Act.
(1) All legislation that contains references to statement of quantity for

whatever purposes is subject to the provisions of this Act.

(2) In making Regulations under this Act, the minister shall take notice of the
original intent of the legislation as to whether a maximum, minimum or
exact value was imposed or inferred by the statement of quantity.
(Inserted by Act 22 of 1984.)

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5 Committee
There is hereby established a Metrication Committee which shall consist of:

(a) the Minister of Labour, Commerce and Industries or such other
person as His Majesty in Council may appoint, who shall be the
Chairman, and

(b) such other members whom His Majesty in Council may appoint.

6 Functions of the Committee.
The Committee shall do all things that it shall consider necessary and desirable
in order that the metric system of measurement may be gradually and
progressively introduced and adopted in the Kingdom, and may for those
purposes conduct and carry out education and publicity programmes in such
manner as it may deem desirable.

7 Employees of the Committee.
The Committee may employ or engage any person or persons and pay such
remunerations as may be approved by His Majesty in Council, to such person or
persons and to its members. Employment of any person by the committee shall
not be a bar to membership of such person in the Committee.

8 Income of the Committee.
The income of the Committee shall include such moneys which may be
approved by the Legislative Assembly in the annual estimate of the government.

9 Privy Council may amend Schedule.
It shall be lawful for His Majesty in Council, by regulation to add to, vary or
amend the Schedules to this Act in accordance with any addition, variation or
amendment of units approved by the General Conference on Weights and
Measures as being within the International System of Units (SI).

10 Regulations.
The Minister may with the consent of Privy Council make regulations which
have the effect of substituting an appropriate metric statement of quantity for
each non-metric statement of quantity in any legislation referred to in section 4,
provided that the appropriate metric statement of quantity does not differ from
the exact metric equivalent of the original (non-metric) statement of quantity by
more than eleven per cent. (Inserted by Act 22 of 1984.)

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11 Savings.
Anything that was completed in a lawful manner prior to the coming into effect
of this Act or any of its pursuant Regulations shall not become unlawful by
virtue of this Act or its Regulations. (Inserted by Act 22 of 1984.)



Metrication Act CAP. 52 SCHEDULE I




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SCHEDULE I

UNITS

Units Symbol Units Symbol
ampere A lux lx
becquerel Bq metre m
candela cd
coulomb C
mole mol
newton N
ohm Ω
farad F pascal Pa
gram g radian rad
gray Gy second (of time) s
henry H siemens S
hertz Hz steradian sr
tesla T
joule J volt V
kelvin K watt W
webber Wb
lumen lm

SCHEDULE II
Prefixes Symbol Prefixes Symbol
atto a kilo k
centi c mega M
deci d micro u
deka da milli m
exa E nano n
femto f peta P
giga G pico p
hecto h tera T

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SCHEDULE III

Units that are not within the International System of Units (SI) but are, by section 2(c)
of the Act hereby defined as being within the metric system of measurement.

DESCRIPTION OF UNITS

Physical
Quantity

Name of Unit Symbol Definition in terms
of other metric
units

Restrictions
as to Use of
Unit

plane angle degree …..° ∏
180

none

minute …..’ ∏
10 800

none

second …..” ∏
648 000

none

area hectare ha 10 000 m2 none
volume gigalitre GL 1 000 000 m3 none
megalitre ML 1 000m3 none
kilolitre kL 1 m3 none
litre L 0,001 m3 none
millilitre mL 0,000 001 m3 none
microlitre /uL 0,000 000 001 m3 none
time day d 864 000 s none
interval hour h 3600 s none
minute min 60 s none
velocity, kilometre km/h or 3,1/6 m.s-1 none
speed per hour km.h-1
mass megatonne Mt 1 000 000 000 kg none
kilotonne kt 1 000 000 kg none
tonne t 1 000 kg none
density tonne per t/m3 or 1000 kg.m-3 none
cubic metre t.m-3
kilograme kg/L or 1000 kg.m-3 none
per litre kg.L-1
temperature degree Celsius °C The Celsius

temperature is such
that °c = °k -
273,15 where °k is
the thermo-dynamic
temperature in
Kelvins

none

temperature
interval

degree Celsius °C 1K none

Metrication Act CAP. 52 SCHEDULE III




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DESCRIPTION OF UNITS

Physical
Quantity

Name of Unit Symbol Definition in terms
of other metric
units

Restrictions
as to Use of
Unit

length international
nautical mile

n mile 1852 m marine and
aerial
navigation,
meteorology

speed knot kn 1852 m.s-1
3600

marine and
aerial
navigation,
meteorology

linear density kilotex ktex 0,001 kg.m-1
(mass per unit
length)

tex tex 0,000 001 kg.m-1

dtex
decitex 0,000 000 1 kg.m-1

measurements
of filaments,
fibres, yarns,
cords and
cordages




Error! No text of specified
style in document. Metrication Act




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