Strengthening the Compliance of the OIC Member States
to International Standards
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APPENDIX 1: INTERVIEW I NSTRUMENT
The purpose of this document is to provide the outline for a 20-30 minute discussion with government
officials and other knowledgeable parties dealing with product standards. The focus is on international
harmonization. The questions are designed to be starting points for a broader discussion, and the
interviewee should be asked at the end if there is any supplementary or complementary information s/he
wishes to provide. When precise quantitative data are not available, interviewees should be asked to
provide “best guess” estimates based on their experience. The intended audience includes officials of
national standards bodies, relevant line ministries (trade, industry, and agriculture), and potentially
representatives of private sector peak bodies (chambers of commerce).
1. Which elements of a national standards infrastructure does your country have in place? Which
organizations are run by the public sector, and which by the private sector?
a. Standards body, and other organizations that promulgate mandatory or voluntary product
standards?
b. Metrology institute?
c. Accreditation board?
d. Testing laboratories?
e. Inspection bodies?
f. Certification bodies?
2. How many mandatory product standards has your country issued to date? Is it possible to have a
sectoral breakdown, even if approximate or impressionistic?
3. How many voluntary product standards has your country issued to date? Is it possible to have a
sectoral breakdown, even if approximate or impressionistic?
4. What proportion of your country’s product standards are mandatory, and what proportion are
voluntary?
5. What proportion of your country’s product standards are promulgated by public bodies, and what
proportion are promulgated by private bodies?
6. What proportion of your country’s product standards are based on, or equivalent to, standards
issued by international bodies like ISO or the Codex Alimentarius?
7. Does your country allow the sale of products that comply with standards issued by an international
organization or another country (if so, which) if there is no relevant domestic standard?
8. Does your country have any mutual recognition agreements:
a. For standards?
b. For conformity assessments?