Strengthening the Compliance of the OIC Member States
to International Standards
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of ASEAN members, in particular the lower income countries.23 Despite the interest in moving forward
on food industry standards as part of a general strategy to boost competitiveness and exports, and
particularly intra-regional trade, progress on harmonizing agriculture related standards has been
challenging. Work has been ongoing under the auspices of the ACCSQ for ten years, and some advances
have been noted, particularly at a structural level. However, efforts remain dispersed in some cases, and
concrete outcomes in terms of an increased proportion of harmonized standards, preferably based on
international standards, has yet to be seen, despite the imminence of the ASEAN Economic Community.
In the related area of mutual recognition of conformity assessments, ASEAN’s way forward has been to
be rely on government to government agreements rather than a truly regional approach. However, the
ASEAN Framework Agreement on MRAs was signed in 1998, and provides a framework for member
states to move forward on mutual recognition. As noted above, however, progress has been limited on a
sectoral basis. Work on MRAs has accelerated since 2002, when the MRA for Electrical and Electronics
was signed by Ministers.
ASEAN’s goal in the area of harmonization and mutual recognition is expressed in the slogan “One
Standard, One Test, Accepted Everywhere”. This statement neatly summarizes the key policy objective
in this area. ASEAN’s example shows that regional structures can be helpful in promoting progress
towards this goal. But it also shows the difficulties inherent in reaching agreement on standards-related
issues in a diverse regional grouping.
Box 7: Standards and Vietnamese Seafood Exports
In addition to intra-regional harmonization and mutual recognition, some ASEAN countries have
recognized that standards issues loom large for their external trade relations as well. One example is
Vietnam, which is a significant producer of seafood. Vietnamese domestic standards for seafood are
more lenient than those found in the main developed country markets, such as the EU. However, seafood
produced according to Vietnamese standards are still regarded as safe for human consumption.
The approach adopted by the Vietnamese seafood industry is potentially instructive for other
developing countries looking to break into large, high standard markets like the EU. Vietnam did not
pursue a harmonization strategy, as it was felt that Vietnamese standards were adequate for the
domestic market given the country’s level of development; implementation of a harmonized standard
would have required all domestic production to comply with it. Instead, the country pursued a dual
regime: seafood destined for export to Europe is produced in line with EU standards, while production
for the domestic market takes place according to Vietnamese standards. On occasion, goods originally
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