Session of the Interstate Council for Standardization, Metrology and Certification of the CIS countries takes place in Ufa

The 43rd session of the Interstate Council for Standardization, Metrology and Certification (MGS) of the CIS countries was opened at the Ufa Congress Hall.

Members of the Bureau on MGS standards, representatives of organisations on standardization of the CIS countries, and also Germany, Great Britain, Belgium, France, Slovakia, Sweden, Poland, Spain, Austria and a group of Arabian countries participate in the next session of the Council.

MGS members should solve a number of pressing issues connected with improvement of quality and competitiveness of products, decrease in technical barriers, strengthening of trade and economic relations.

According to the deputy head of Rosstandart Alexander Zazhigalkin, complexity of current work of the Council consists in substantial growth in number of developed standards.

“Only five-six years ago about 200 standards a year were confirmed,” Alexander Zazhigalkin informed the journalists. “Now we together with the CIS countries confirm 2000 standards a year.” Such substantial growth of volume of standardization work the deputy head of Rosstandart explains by economy diversification. Besides, the CIS countries try to overcome «a backlog which appeared in the late nineties and especially in the beginning of 2000’s». There is also a subjective factor: recently «the state began to pay more attention to such questions, and it concerns not only Russia, but also Kazakhstan, Belarus, Ukraine».

The executive secretary of the Council, the director of Bureau on standards Nikolay Sonets informed that at the current session it should be necessary to accept 500 standards.

Among the most important issues to solve at an interstate level, the director of Bureau on standards named agreement acceptance on technical regulations, on accreditation, agreements on mutual recognition of procedures on conformity assessment. At the 43rd session in Ufa an agreement on removal of barriers in trade which only « partially will solve a problem» will be considered.

The main events of the 43rd session of the Council are planned for two days. On Thursday a plenary session will be held, and then MGS commissions will start their work. On Friday, June 7, arrival of MGS chairman — the head of Rosstandart Grigory Elkin is expected. Cooperation agreement signing between the Government of Bashkortostan Republic and Rosstandart is planned. The ceremony of handing over Awards of the President RB in the field of quality for 2012 will take place.

Working meetings and negotiations are planned for Saturday. The cultural program is also supposed.