Developing Lasting Connections

2004-07-30

Recognized as one of the greatest agents of change of our modern world, information technology has also become synonymous with making connections. Advances in technology have helped strengthen national economies and forge new relationships between individuals and organizations around the globe. Unfortunately, progress has not happened at the same pace for everyone. In fact, many nations are still struggling to become full participants of the global village.

The Standards Council of Canada (SCC) is just one of many organizations in Canada that has committed help to developing countries. By sharing the knowledge and technological tools it has employed to build its own National Standards System (NSS), the SCC is contributing to their sustainability.  The SCC recognizes that helping developing countries to become more active in the areas of standardization and trade will have lasting benefits that extend well beyond national borders.

Over the years, the SCC has taken part in numerous projects in support of developing countries. Back in 2002, the SCC participated in the International Organization for Standardization (ISO) Council Task Force on Developing Countries (DCTF), which identified five main types of activities to enhance the participation of developing countries in international standardization. In addition to highlighting technology as a key area of work, it outlined a need to: improve awareness, build capacity, facilitate participation in ISO technical work and improve national and regional cooperation.

Other SCC contributions have included: sponsorship of participants to attend ISO and International Electrotechnical Commission (IEC) committee meetings, twinning arrangements to provide standards experts in developing countries with leadership experience in international committees, and financial support through the SCC's international and regional memberships in standards organizations. The SCC has also played an active role in committees and working groups dedicated to addressing the challenges of developing countries.

Following are just two examples of how the SCC is sharing its technical know-how and supporting emerging economies in their standardization and trade efforts.

The Bolivia Project – Breaking Down Barriers to Trade

In the fall of 2004, Bolivia will become home to the first Spanish-language version of the Export Alert! service. An accomplishment made possible by the SCC. The e-mail based system will process and provide Bolivian subscribers with notifications issued in Spanish and English under the World Trade Organization (WTO) Agreements on Technical Barriers to Trade (TBT) and on the Application of Sanitary and Phytosanitary Measures (SPS). The service will help ensure that Bolivian industries are kept informed about changing product requirements that could affect export of goods from the country and aid the country in its efforts to implement the disciplines of the WTO TBT/SPS Agreements.

Export Alert! is a Canadian-designed service that was developed as a means of keeping stakeholders informed about trade-related information that is circulated at the international level. It has been recognized by WTO members as an excellent model for the dissemination of information to a country's domestic stakeholders about potential changes to product requirements that may impact trade.

The Bolivian launch of the service is several years in the making and has involved a high level of cooperation between the Bolivian national body, Instituto Boliviano de Normalizacion y Calidad (IBNORCA), and the Standards Council of Canada. The SCC was first approached by IBNORCA with a request for technical assistance to in August 2001. In early 2002, the SCC's Canadian Advisory Committee on Developing Country Matters (CAC/DECVO) notified Bolivia that it had been chosen for a two-phase pilot project to improve the country's technical and trade capacity.

The initial phase of the project provided Bolivia with the technical capacity necessary to sustain the Export Alert! service. This was accomplished with the help of the MED 2000 Project, an ISO-led multi-agency initiative that provides developing countries with technological assistance to strengthen information and communication capacity. The program, which was already being implemented in other countries in the Americas, was extended to include Bolivia at Canada's request.

Work on the second part of the project – implementation of Export Alert! - began in Canada in order to adapt and translate the service into Spanish for use in Latin America. This was accomplished in September 2002, and in December 2003 when the MED 2000 Project was completed, work was launched in Canada to prepare the necessary contract and administrative details to have the service up and running, including training of the Bolivian staff to administrate the system.

Even after the system is up and running, the SCC and Bolivia intend to continue collaboration. The SCC has committed to providing additional technical support and training for the new service.

The Cuba Project – Constructing New Lines of Communication

It is April 1, 2004. Armando Carvallo, assistant director of Cuba's standardization institute and Yarmay Montero, a standards specialist from Cuba's national standards body, watch from the window of an airplane as the Ottawa landscape fades into the distance before settling in for their return journey to Havana, Cuba. The plane ride home marks the end of a weeklong working visit to the SCC's headquarters in Ottawa.

In addition to a sense of optimism about further collaboration, the Cuban delegates returned home with a wealth of new knowledge about the computer technologies utilized in Canada to help coordinate and administer Canada's National Standards System. Of particular interest to Cuba's national standards body (Oficina Nacional de Normalizacion or NC) is the collaboration tool (Sitescape) used by thousands of Canadian committee members and stakeholders from across Canada that participate in standards-related activities.

Unlike some developing countries, Cuba already has a well-established standards infrastructure, with an estimated 85 staff working at the NC headquarters in Havana and other standards-related bureaus set up across the country. However, Cuba still faces many financial and logistical challenges. It wants to implement technologies to make standards work more efficient and affordable, especially as it embarks on more international standards work.

The Canada-Cuba partnership began with informal discussions between SCC Executive Director Peter Clark and NC Director Nancy Fernandez-Rodriguez initiated during the ISO General Assembly in Buenos Aires, Argentina in September 2003.

An introduction to some of the information technologies used by the SCC took place at NC offices in Havana in December 2003. The organization was impressed with the demonstration and it began making plans with the SCC for a hands-on training session. The trip was made possible through funding from the Canadian Advisory Committee on Developing Countries (DEVCO).

Mr. Carvallo and Mr. Montero arrived in Ottawa on March 25 and over the course of the week they spent many hours learning the ins-and-outs of SCC's collaboration tools.  They also took advantage of the visit to become better acquainted with many of the SCC's activities and to learn about Canada's National Standards System and the work undertaken by the SCC in the specific areas of standards, conformity assessment and policy development.

Both Mr. Carvallo and Mr. Montero expressed their gratitude not only for the SCC's generosity in hosting the visit, but also to the staff who put so much effort into ensuring that the trip was as rewarding as possible for them.

“It's a great favour they are doing for us,” said Mr. Carvallo. He added that they were especially pleased with the level of knowledge exchange that took place over the week, as well as the important new relationships they developed while in Ottawa.

The Experience of Reciprocal Learning - Lasting Collaborations

Participants from developing countries are not the only ones to come away with increased knowledge from training initiatives. While projects are designed to educate partners in developing countries, they are also a very positive experience for Canada. 

SCC Program Officer Andrea Ciemny, who worked on the Cuba project, is quick to note that the learning goes both ways.  She points to her experiences during the December 2003 visit to NC's headquarters in Havana as an example of the reciprocal nature of the SCC's assistance projects. The main goal of the trip was to introduce some of the Canadian standards technology to Cuba, but the event was also an opportunity for Canada to get a closer look at how standards work is being done elsewhere. This type of knowledge will help the SCC not only to continue providing assistance to other countries, but to improve Canada's own system.

Knowledge-sharing partnerships are also an opportunity to build important alliances with developing countries who share similar viewpoints on standards issues. In recent years the international standardization community has acknowledged the importance of ensuring global relevance in its work and the increased involvement of developing nations in this discourse is central to meeting this goal. At the same time, the Standards Council notes the important role of partnerships with developing countries in regional bodies where it is actively involved, including the Pacific Area Standards Congress (PASC) and the Pan American Standards Commission (COPANT).

The SCC looks at its work with developing countries as a solid long-term investment.

It believes that helping developing countries to strengthen their own capacity by building a solid internal standards infrastructure and a stronger voice internationally will not only benefit the quality of life and economic development of the country being aided, but will also help to improve global standardization and trade efforts.

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