ARSO STANDARDISATION AND CHALLENGES

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ARSO STANDARDISATION AND CHALLENGES OF
INDUSTRIALISATION IN AFRICA BY DAMIAN UDENNA
AGBANELO, ARSO SECRETARY GENERAL ON THE OCCASION
OF ARSO COUNCIL/DONOR STRATEGY PLAN WORKSHOP
6 NOVEMBER 2007, KHARTOUM, SUDAN.
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1. ARSO STRATEGY PLAN WORKSHOP 1.1 The essence
- to review ARSO performance
- to open informed debate on ARSO in general
- to create forum for objective dialogue and
reach consensus on effective plans and
collective responsibilities for success of
ARSO The success of ARSO is directly related
to realization of ARSO set Objectives, viz
Development Objective - To improve
intra-African and global trade Purpose
objective - To evolve an efficient, effective
and self - sustaining ARSO to meet the
challenges of global competitiveness for growth..
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• The challenge of success of ARSO thus starts
  with the transformation of our divergent views
  into a consensus-action-plan for optimal
  benefits to drive the formulation of three
  /four (3/4) year strategy for the optimisation
  and sustainability of ARSO Standardisation
  co-ordination in Africa for
• - African Market integration progress
• - poverty reduction
• - effective participation in global market
  competitiveness
• - complementariness of African standardisation
• - conducive standards regulatory environment
• - ARSO membership and standardisation ownership

Contributing standardisation dividends to
stimulate improvement in the above economic
activity indices is enhancing evolution of
industrialisation base.
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• 2. INDUSTRIALISATION
• 2.1 Improved productivity trade dividends
  industrialisation
• or
• Systematic and/or continual improvement driven
  growth of commercial activities for optimal
  benefits of the society.
• The January 2008 Summit of AU Heads of State and
  Government has Industrialisation of Africa as
  the theme.
• Standardisation is a necessity in charting the
  roadmap for industrialization in Africa
  because - Optimal benefits from marketplace
  competitiveness ignite and sustain
  industralisation
• - Marketplace competitiveness is knowledge
  based quality game driven globally by
  interdependent factors of market access and
  consumer protection.
• - Today, non tariff barriers such as
  quality diversity, rather than tariff barriers
  impede market access and consumer protection
  and associated optimal benefits.
• Lack of common quality level is the greatest
  hindrance to intraAfrican trade, observed CAMI
  17, 2006 Egypt.

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The task of this platform is defined. Planning
for sustained standardisation awareness,
ownership, political support, capacity
development and management, cost-effectiveness
delivery, is imperative for evolving
industrialization base in Africa.
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• STATUTORY STANDARDISATION IN AFRICA
• Levels
• - National NSBs
• - Regional RECs
• - Continental ARSO
• 3.1 What ARSO Was and Is
• ARSO (1977 2005) was acronym for African
  Regional Organisation for Standardisation.
• - an intergovernmental standardisation body
• - developing and publishing African Regional
  Standards empowered by its 1977 constitution.
• - Published 733 African Regional Standards
• - Included Accreditation and Certification as
  components of its statutory functions

ARSO STRATEGY DOCUMENT (ASTD) 2005
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• The Addis Ababa ARSO Plan of Action for
  Identity, Recognition
• and Realization (2004 2006) by Damian Udenna
  Agbanelo, 2003
• and The Value of ARSO (report of Sida sponsored
  survey on ARSO) 2003 are relevant to what ARSO
  was (www.arso.oran.org/ communication
  centre/articles and publications).
• Both initiated and facilitated respectively, the
  Re-engineering ARSO process
• ARSO (2005 date) is acronym for African
  Organisation for Standardisation
• - an intergovernmental standardisation
  co-ordination body, empowered by revised ARSO
  Constitution 2007 for

ARSO STRATEGY DOCUMENT (ASTD) 2005

• harmonizing RECs and /or National Standards as
  African Standards (ARS) and issuing
  recommendations on the same to RECs and NSBs for
  publication and Use
• facilitating development of standards on unique
  products of AU member States by relevant NSB(s)
  and advocating the adoption of the same as
  international standards

• The ARSO Strategy Document (ASTD) 2005 is
  relevant to what is and intends to be pursuant
  to impacting optimal benefits of
  standardisation on the ultimate consumer
  (www.arso.oran.org/ communication
  centre/articles and publications)

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• Fast tracking harmonisation of standards
  diversity, as ARS, improving
• stakeholder awareness and participation in
  Standardisation, capacity
• development of African Standardisation,
  reasonable political support, conducive
• standardsregulatory environment, ownership,
  among others, are the challenges
• of ARSO standardisation co-ordination in Africa
  in order to guarantee value to
• the Ultimate Consumer.
• This guarantee is a necessity also for evolving
  industrialization base, minimizing influx of
  substandard products, co-operating and
  improving the informal sectors in Africa.

ARSO STRATEGY DOCUMENT (ASTD) 2005
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3.2 Challenging the challenges Methodology Pr
inciple of shared Responsibilities facilitated by
Frog leap, collaboration, co-operation,
co-ordination and mutual recognition refererred
to as ARSO Standardisation Activities Model
(SAM) Dividends of SAM include
ARSO STRATEGY DOCUMENT (ASTD) 2005

• revived donor co-operation /interest 2003
• multi- stakeholders driven ARSO Mission and
  Vision 2004
• hosting of ARSO website in Nairobi 2004
• ARSO flag symbolizing ARSO continental
  standardisation
• co-ordination 2004
• Institutionalised yearly African standardisation
  Forum 2005
• Revised ARSO staff Rules and Conditions of
  Service 2005
• ARSO Strategy document (ASTD) 2005
• Interactive ARSO Bimonthly Newsletter 2005
• Multi- stakeholder driven prioritized needs of
  African
• Standardisation 2006
• ARSO regulatory agencies co-operation
  initiated 2006
• Revised ARSO Constitution 2007
• Draft ASHAM 2007
• AACCTs 2007
• ARSO Technical Management Committed created,
  constituted and
• draft terms of Reference evolved 2007

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ARSO STRATEGY DOCUMENT (ASTD) 2005
Dividends of SAM are wealth creation tools to
facilitate delivery of optimal benefits to the
individual and the society as well as chart
standardisation-led industrialization base in
Africa.
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• 3.3 Co-operations
• Political support A critical success factor
• AU / AUC Co-operation is improving viz
• - AACCTs is chaired by AU Department of Trade
  and Industry
• - AU through AUC participated in Expert Group
  Work on ASHAM
• - AU ARSO MoU is being finalised
• - CAMI 17, 2006 Egypt Expert Group Resolution 3
  adopted by CAMI 17 We reiterate the
  commitment of our governments and call upon our
  development partners to urgently strengthens
  African Stardardisation and Conformity
  assessment infrastructure and increase
  standards harmonisation in Africa, both at the
  national, regional and continental levels, based
  on UNIDO recognized experienced in Africa, (i.e.
  UEMOA Quality programme). This should be done in
  co-operation with regional and international
  technical agencies, such as ARSO, ISO, ILAC and
  OIML.

ARSO STRATEGY DOCUMENT (ASTD) 2005
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Resolution 79 of 2nd session of ExtraOrdinary
Conference of AU Ministers of Trade, Customs and
Immigration, Rwanda 2004 (see Annex 1) 1st
Extra Ordinary Session of CAMIs Senior Officials
Report, (Sept 2007, South Africa), noted by CAMI
calls for Support to strengthen capacities and
to implement programmes of African Regional
Organisations such as ARSOs African Standards
Harmonisation Model (ASHAM) and networks
/platforms such as the Africa Metrology Network
(AFRIMET)
ARSO STRATEGY DOCUMENT (ASTD) 2005
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• Technical Partnership
• ARSO-RECs
• - ASHAM and its implementation
• - Participation in each others standardisation
  platforms
• - MoU exists for review /updating
• - RECs are represented in AACCTs
• ARSO-African Energy Commission (AFREC) AU
  Agency
• - ARSO is a member of AFREC Working Group for
  the establishment of African Electrotechnical
  Commission (AFSEC)
• - ARSO-UN Agencies in Africa
• - ARSO is a member (participating) of Industry,
  Trade and Market Access Cluster (ITMA) of UN
  Agencies and Organisations working in support
  of the African Union and its NEPAD programmes
• ARSO-UNEP
• - ARSO participated in UNEP Organised Regional
  Expert Meeting, Addis Ababa 2007 on African
  Ecolabelling Mechanism (AEM)
• - ARSO is to be represented in the Board of AEM.

ARSO STRATEGY DOCUMENT (ASTD) 2005
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• ARSO-ISO MoU
• ARSO-IEC-Cordial and formal
• ARSO-UNECE Working Party VI on Regulatory
• Co-operation and Standardisation
• - New approach /International Technical
  Harmonisation Model
• ARSO-Prokarite
• - harmonisation of Regional Standards on Shear
  butter and Shear kernel as ARS.
• ARSO-Codex-Cordial and formal
• ARSO-CEN MoU
• ARSO-SIS MoU
• ITC Cordial and formal

ARSO STRATEGY DOCUMENT (ASTD) 2005
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ARSO STRATEGY DOCUMENT (ASTD) 2005
The ARSO Strategy for the transformation of
challenges to opportunities for answering the
change-call for positive impact on African
economy is driven by collective impetus provided
by these co-operations interests support.
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• Opportunities are time-and technology-driven.
  They are not
• blank cheques.
• Hence now is the-opportuned to answer the
  change-call Africa Are You Ready?
• Ready to, among others, collectively and
  conscientiously plan for
• impacting positively on African economy through

ARSO STRATEGY DOCUMENT (ASTD) 2005

• Improvement of standardisation awareness among
  stakeholders in order to improve the support and
  implementation of standards for improved
  intra-African and global trade.
• Capacity development of African standardisation
  for effective participation in standardisation
  and delivery.
• Enhancement of networking, ICT capabilities
• Strengthening ARSO Organs
• Sustainability

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• The overall objective of the expected practical
  plan is that within 3-4 year
• shelf life of the plan, lack of common quality
  levels (standards, regulations,
• environmental diversities) would have been
  considerably reduced and such
• impacts reflected in, for instance, improved and
  sustained
• - intra-African and global trade
• - political support for ARSO
• - standardisation ownership
• - participation in standardisation activities
• - business requests for ARS and Partnership
• - sustainability and ownership of ARSO
• - ARSO interactive website
• - SWOT based assistance
• consensus Model for establishment of NSBs in
  Africa
• Complimentariness of standardisation in Africa
• - specialised training and consultancy offered by
  ARSO
• - ARSO Training Centre
• informal sector performance.

ARSO STRATEGY DOCUMENT (ASTD) 2005
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• Challenging the challenges of these building
  blocks is the essence of this
• 6 November 2007, Sudan, ARSO Strategy Plan
  Workshop.
• The task is quite great but not insurmountable.
• - As a focused, informed, supported team, we
  will overcome
• - Overcoming translates into brightening the
  hope of the ultimate consumer and our
  co-operation partners in this business of
  standardisation for optimal benefits

ARSO STRATEGY DOCUMENT (ASTD) 2005
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• WHAT ARSO IS NOT
• ARSO is not an accreditation body
• The organisation will encourage, assist in
  the co- ordination of activities for the
  establishment of African Accreditation body.
• ARSO is not a Certification/Conformity
  Assessment Agency
• The organisation harmonises conformity
  assessment procedures as African Standards to
  facilitate/encourage recognition of Quality
  Marks among AU member States.

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• Annex I AU CONFERENCE OF MINISTERS OF
  TRADE,CUSTOMS AND IMMIGRATION 2nd ORDINARY
  SESSION 27 28 MAY 2004 KIGALI, RWANDA
  AU/TD/MIN/Rpt.(II).
• 79. The Ministers took note of the efforts so far
  deployed by ARSO to re -
• engineer itself and accordingly agreed to
• 1. Encourage country membership and
  participation in ARSO
• and its activities.
• 2. Encourage participation in international
  standardization.
• 3. Urge AU Member States to commit adequate
  resources to
• standardization, conformity assessment and
  related matters.
• 4. Promote the development of a quality culture
  in their
• respective member countries.
• 5. Apply the principles of harmonization of
  standards as laid
• down in the WTO/TBT and SPS agreements.
• 6. Allow ARSO to make progress reports at
  forthcoming sessions
• of the Ministers of Trade and Industry.
• Thank You For Your Kind Audience. Remain
  Blessed.

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AFRICAN ORGANISATION FOR STANDARDISATION
ARSO CENTRAL SECRETARIAT
3rd Floor, International House Mama Ngina
Street P. O. Box 57363-00200 NAIROBI, KENYA. Tel
254-020-224561/311641/311608 Fax
254-020-218792 E-mail arso_at_arso-oran.org,/info_at_ar
so-oran.org/acs_at_arso-oarn.org/ http
www.arso-oran.org