UNIDO UPDATE TO THE TBT COMMITTEE
INFORMATION PROVIDED BY THE UNITED NATIONS INDUSTRIAL
DEVELOPMENT ORGANIZATION (UNIDO)
This document contains
information provided by UNIDO at the TBT Committee meeting of 26‑28 March 2025
under Agenda Item 7.a on Updates by Observers.
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1 INTRODUCTION
1.1. UNIDO is a specialized agency of the United Nations with a unique
mandate to promote, dynamize and accelerate industrial development. Our mandate
is reflected in Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) 9: "Build resilient
infrastructure, promote inclusive and sustainable industrialization and foster
innovation", but UNIDO's activities contribute to all the SDGs. UNIDO
provides support to its 173 Member States through four mandated functions:
technical cooperation; action-oriented research and policy-advisory services;
normative standards-related activities; and fostering partnerships for
knowledge and technology transfer.
1.2. For more than 40 years, UNIDO has been supporting partner countries
to increase their competitiveness through quality and compliance with
standards. UNIDO's approach to Quality Infrastructure (QI) development is
systemic and holistic, from building awareness to helping initiate, develop and
strengthen a fit-for-purpose QI that runs efficiently and is cost-effective.
UNIDO promotes good practice, capacity building and training, and fosters
global cooperation in standardization, metrology, accreditation and compliance
along value chains.
1.3. In the meantime, UNIDO is assisting developing countries and their
public and private stakeholders in leveraging the potential of their quality
infrastructure systems to advance greener and low-emission industrial
development and sustainable trade.
2 THE QUALITY INFRASTRUCTURE FOR SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT (QI4SD) INDEX
2.1. The Quality Infrastructure for Sustainable Development (QI4SD) Index
provides a framework of indicators that summarizes the overall state of
development of a country's and/or region's QI readiness to support the
Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). The QI4SD Index is a tool that provides
valuable inputs to inform policy decisions, national SDG implementation plans,
and the planning, coordination and evaluation of technical cooperation
programmes. It highlights the value of QI for sustainable development and the
importance of investment in this area. As a key enabler of sustainable
progress, QI is essential, and the QI4SD Index addresses a critical information
gap as the first tool to explicitly measure how well QI supports sustainable
development.
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UNIDO together
with the International Organization for Standardization (ISO) launched the 2nd
edition of the Quality Policy survey to 172 ISO members from 31 May to 15 August
2024 to collect indicator data for the Policy dimension.
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The 2nd
edition of the Quality Infrastructure for Sustainable Development (QI4SD)
Index, developed by UNIDO, was launched in November 2024, and a report on the
summary and key trends was published.
2.2. For more details about the QI4SD Index, please visit: https://hub.unido.org/qi4sd/?year=2024.
3 SUPPORT TO QUALITY INFRASTRUCTURE IN ARMENIA
3.1. The project, funded by the European Union, aims to support Armenia
in enhancing the metrology system by assisting in improving the legal framework
and strengthening institutional and technical capacity of the National
Standards Body and Metrology (NBSM), the National Metrology Institute in line
with international standards, recommendations and best practices. It also seeks
to increase Armenia's participation in international and regional metrology
communities. In 2024, the following main results were achieved as part of the
technical cooperation project in collaboration with the Ministry of Economy,
Republic of Armenia:
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Assistance
provided in developing the draft amendment to the Law Uniformity of
Measurements, aiming to align with relevant international guidelines such as
OIML D1 (Edition 2020): National metrology systems – Developing the
institutional and legislative framework.
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Establishment of
four industrial calibration laboratories (electrical, force, dimensional and
chemical) which are being capacitated as per relevant international standards
towards international accreditation to provide competent and traceable
calibration services to various public and private stakeholders including
conformity assessment service providers and industrial users, aiming to support
their efforts in improving standard compliance capabilities and trade
competitiveness.
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Awareness raising
of the public and industrial stakeholders on a modern quality infrastructure system
especially, metrology for sustainable industrial development, addressing of
trade barriers and trade diversification.
3.2. For more information about the project, please visit: https://open.unido.org/projects/AM/projects/210152.
4 QUALITAN: QUALITY AND STANDARDS COMPLIANCE PROGRAMME FOR THE UNITED REPUBLIC
OF TANZANIA
4.1. The QUALITAN project in Tanzania, funded by the European Union (EU)
and implemented by UNIDO, aims to capacitate the conformity assessment services
of the Tanzania Bureau of Standards (TBS) to meet market and regulatory needs,
further supporting MSMEs' efforts in conforming to quality standards, advancing
digital transformation, reducing trade cost and increasing market access. In
2024, the following main results were achieved:
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38 sets of
state-of-the-art laboratory equipment were provided for enhancing testing and
metrology capacity.
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Study tours to
Egypt, Namibia, and South Africa to strengthen TBS staff's expertise in
risk-based inspections and digital lab management.
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Training provided
to TBS in cybersecurity, database management, and digital communications, for provision
of various in digital means.
4.2. For more information about the project, please visit: https://open.unido.org/projects/TZ/projects/210097.
5 PROMOVE COMÉRCIO – BUILDING COMPETITIVENESS FOR EXPORTS PROJECT IN MOZAMBIQUE
5.1. The project is funded by the EU and implemented by UNIDO since March
2020. It aims to improve trade, competitiveness and the business environment in
Mozambique for greater market access for the selected value chains, inter alia
by promoting sustainable, market-driven Quality Infrastructure services in the
country.
5.2. Therefore, a core component of the project is the enhancement of
Mozambique's National Quality Infrastructure in line with good governance
principles, with a particular focus on strengthening the National Institute for
Standardization and Quality (INNOQ, IP) and advancing the international
recognition of its services. In 2024, the following main results were achieved:
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Support provided
in the implementation and dissemination of Mozambique's recently approved National
Quality Policy, which serves as a strategic framework for advancing metrology, standardization,
conformity assessment, and accreditation in line with international best
practices.
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Assistance in the
development and approval of INNOQ's Strategic Plan (2024-2028), which outlines a
roadmap for institutional sustainability and improved service delivery.
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Training in
Regulatory Impact Assessment to government officials for developing and
implementing technical regulations in a way that is aligned with WTO TBT
related principles including Good Regulatory Practices.
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Support provided
to Mozambique's participation in regional standardization efforts, particularly
through its engagement with the Southern African Development Community (SADC)
TBT Expert Group, which fosters the harmonization of technical regulations and
conformity assessment procedures at the regional level.
5.3. For more information about the project, please visit: https://open.unido.org/projects/MZ/projects/180068.
6 THE GLOBAL QUALITY AND STANDARDS PROGRAMME – SOUTH AFRICA (PHASE II)
The
GQSP South Africa Phase II project commenced on 01 June 2024 and will run until
May 2027. The objective is to unlock the export potential of essential and
vegetable oils produced in South Africa. This entails strengthening the
quality and standards compliance capacity to facilitate market access for SMEs
in these value chains destined for markets such as cosmetics and health. The
following TBT-related activities were achieved:
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A guideline
document on bottling practices has been prepared to assist SMEs in complying
with legal metrology labelling and pre-packaging requirements.
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Support was
provided to the Multi-Stakeholder Quality Forum (MSQF) comprising the national quality
infrastructure institutions and the conformity assessment associations to
collectively engage with regulators on the role of standards, conformity
assessment, accreditation and metrology in facilitating trade, with a focus on
the availability of services to support regulators in delivering their trade-related
mandates.
6.1. For more information about the project, please visit: https://open.unido.org/projects/ZA/projects/230070.
7 INCLUSIVE GREEN GROWTH IN EGYPT (IGGE)
7.1. IGGE aims to contribute to the efforts of the government of Egypt to
foster market system changes for a more conducive environment to green MSMEs,
through interventions at the micro, meso, and macro level.
7.2. As part of its efforts to lower barriers to market access for green
MSMEs, IGGE has been supporting the development of market-led standards of
bio-based fertilizers (BBFs), together with the national standardization body
and in close consultation with the private sector. International standards were
used as references and benchmarks, in addition to local market needs, thus
contributing to enhancing market trust in Egyptian BBFs at both the national
and international level. The following results were achieved:
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9 BBFs standards
developed/adjusted in consultation with private sector and approved by the Egyptian
government.
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The Egyptian
National Standardization Body was capacitated on the development of market-led standards
through on-the-job training.
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Awareness and
knowledge of more than 35 companies and 10 institutions on the standards were enhanced
through various public-private workshops.
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BBFs registration
guidelines under development in consultation with public and private sectors.
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10 laboratories
were mapped and assessed, and recommendations were developed for an enhanced quality
infrastructure.
7.3. For more information about the project, please visit: https://open.unido.org/projects/EG/projects/170146.
8 INDUSTRIAL DEEP DECARBONIZATION INITIATIVE (IDDI)
8.1. In 2021, UNIDO and the Clean Energy Ministerial (CEM) launched the
Industrial Deep Decarbonization Initiative (IDDI), a global coalition dedicated
to reducing industrial emissions, with an initial focus on steel, cement, and
concrete. IDDI promotes market-driven solutions by fostering demand for low and
near-zero emission materials through green public procurement. The following
key activities were implemented as part of this initiative:
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Introduced the
Green Public Procurement Pledge (GPP Pledge), defining four levels of
commitment for public procurement of low and near-zero emission steel, cement,
and concrete. The initiative includes a Statement of Intent, allowing
governments to signal their interest in aligning procurement policies with
low-emission material adoption while maintaining flexibility in implementation.
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At COP28, IDDI
reaffirmed its commitment to Steel Standards and Common Emissions Measurement Principles,
emphasizing the need for harmonized emissions measurement methodologies. In
line with the WTO TBT Agreement Code of Good Practice and the TBT Committee's
Six Principles (transparency, openness, impartiality, consensus, effectiveness,
and coherence).
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IDDI has
developed a Practical Guide for Implementing an Energy Management System
(EnMS), referencing ISO standards such as ISO 9001 (quality), OHSAS 18001
(occupational health and safety), ISO 22000 (food safety), and ISO 14001
(environmental management). This guide integrates energy management within
existing systems, ensuring conformity with international regulations while fostering
efficiency.
8.2. For more information about the project, please visit: https://open.unido.org/projects/M0/projects/210039.
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