As part of the SIZA terms and conditions, each member must ensure they remain actively involved in the oversight and upkeep of their membership profile. Duplicate registrations can cause inconsistencies and issues not only for SIZA members, but also for their linked members, which is why it is important to always ensure that you only register the profile(s) you need once.
SIZA admin have noticed a few different scenarios which lead to duplication of profiles.
- When registering a new profile for the first time, some members create duplicate profiles. This could be due to two people in the same business registering a new MySIZA profile, or sometimes people are unsure of whether the registration was successful the first time, so they register again.
- When it is time for membership renewal, some members re-register and create a new profile instead of renewing the membership on their current profile. Please note that when membership expired, it is still not necessary to register again as the expired profile can be reactivated by completing payment of outstanding membership fees.
- If you have duplicate profiles, this will result in a duplication of cost to your business as well as confusion and distrust among retailers, importers, and exporters as to which profile is correct. Remember, the SIZA membership profiles are linked to other platforms such as Sedex and GLOBALG.A.P. If you have a duplicate profile, those profiles will also be duplicated, and your data will not be comprehensive and complete. It is very important that all your previous SAQ and audit data is included in your profile on all platforms related to your buyers. Furthermore, your membership data on MySIZA cannot be transferred if a new profile is registered instead of renewing your current membership, which means that audit and SAQ data will be lost and will only be able to be captured again at an additional fee.
- If you create a duplicate profile and the original profile becomes inactive, any audits conducted on the original profile will no longer be valid, along with the Audit Completion Letter which will no longer be useable on the duplicate profile as the membership numbers will differ. In addition, if there are duplicate profiles using the same GLOBALG.A.P. or Sedex numbers, this will cause errors with the API link which is used to transfer data between platforms via your GLOBALG.A.P. or Sedex membership number. There will also be a financial burden as the duplicate profiles are paid for and need to be deleted on MySIZA, Sedex, and GLOBALG.A.P. Therefore, it is extremely important to pay attention to your profile and ensure that no duplication occurs unnecessarily.
If you are unsure of whether a profile has already been registered, or if you have any queries relating to your MySIZA profile, please phone the SIZA office on (021) 852 8184 or send an email to Lynn Taute (lynn@siza.co.za).