By: Jim Olshefsky, Director of External Relations ASTM International

Abstract:  The article is intended to provide a brief introduction about ASTM International, its role in the development of standards, and promotion of the communication between ASTM International and worldwide national standards bodies, including the African Organisation for Standardisation (ARSO).

About ASTM International

ASTM International, formerly known as the American Society for Testing and Materials, is a globally recognized leader in the development and delivery of voluntary consensus standards.  On June 16, 1898, seventy engineers and businessmen met in Philadelphia to form the American Section of the International Association for Testing Materials. The American Section’s first technical committee on steel initiated a series of discussions of testing and material standards for the railroad industry, where most of its members were employed.  At the fifth annual meeting of the American Section in 1902, they renamed the organization the American Society for Testing Materials.  In 2001, ASTM changed its name to “ASTM International” to better reflect ASTM’s support of a standards development process that incorporates consensus irrespective of national borders.  Today, over 12,000 ASTM standards are used around the world to improve product quality, enhance health and safety, strengthen market access and trade, and build consumer confidence.

ASTM’s leadership in international standards development is driven by the contributions of our members: more than 30,000 of the world’s top technical experts and business professionals representing 150 countries. Working in an open and transparent process and using ASTM’s advanced Information Technology (IT) infrastructure, ASTM members create the test methods, specifications, classifications, guides, and practices that support consumers, industries, and governments worldwide.

ASTM International standards are developed in accordance with the guiding principles of the World Trade Organization for the development of international standards: coherence, consensus, development dimension, effectiveness, impartiality, openness, relevance, and transparency.  ASTM International world headquarters is located in West Conshohocken, Pennsylvania, U.S.A.  The organization also has offices in Belgium, Canada, China, Peru, and Washington, D.C.  

Memorandum of Understanding Program

Launched in 2001, ASTM International’s Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) program promotes communication between ASTM International and national standards bodies worldwide, fostering awareness of the standardization systems of all parties involved. The purpose of the program is to increase greater worldwide participation in the ASTM standards development process and facilitate the development of national standards that will aid health, safety, environmental, and economic conditions.

ASTM has had an active role in Africa since the signing of its first MoU on the African continent with the Standards Association of Zimbabwe in 2002.  Since then, ASTM has signed MoU’s with 28 other African national standards bodies as well as two regional organizations; SADC Cooperation in Standards (SADCSTAN) in 2003 and the Arab Industrial Development and Mining Organization (AIDMO) in 2019.  A 2014 conversation between ASTM’s Vice President of Global Cooperation, Teresa Cendrowska, and officials from the Cameroon Agence des Normes et de la Qualité (ANOR) led to the signing of an MoU with the African Organisation for Standardisation (ARSO) in 2015.   

“The MOU will strengthen the relationship between our organizations to help meet the needs of people and businesses in Africa and around the world.  In addition, the MOU will aid in the development of standards for health, safety and the environment in ARSO member states,” concluded the ASTM President at the occasion of the signing of the MoU between ARSO and ASTM in 2015.

ARSO, formerly the African Regional Organisation for Standardisation traces its genesis to the unfolding events and the prevailing mood of the African socio-political and economic Pan-Africanism of the 1970s and the culmination of which at a Conference held at the historic and important city of Accra, Ghana in 1977.  In January of that year, the African Governments under the auspices of the United Nations Economic Commission for Africa (ECA) and the Organisation of African Unity (OAU) (currently African Union (AU)) convened the Founding Conference of ARSO to consider the first Constitution of ARSO and to witness the formation of the Organisation to speed-up African Economic Integration.  Today, ARSO serves as Africa’s intergovernmental standards body with the mandate of creating tools for standards development, harmonization, and implementation. Together, these systems work to enhance Africa’s internal trading capacity, increase Africa’s product and service competitiveness globally, uplift the welfare of African consumers, and serve as a standardization forum for future prospects in international trade.

The MoU signed between ASTM International and ARSO provides the opportunity for both organizations to have closer communications. It allows ASTM International’s technical resources to strengthen the relationship between the two parties to enhance their support for the needs of the ARSO Member States. ASTM International annually provides a complete subscription of its 12,000 standards to ARSO for its use in strengthening the ARSO standards program.  Currently, ASTM has 116 MoU’s with national standards bodies and regional bodies worldwide, the most recent of which was an MoU signed with the Standards New Zealand  in August 2020.

As reported by ARSO members in their respective annual reports to ASTM International, there are 6,632

citations to ASTM International standards from 131 ASTM technical committees. The use of ASTM standards yields many benefits and opportunities for the individual nations, the continent of Africa, and globally:

• Significant cost and time reduction to deliver standards
• Advances technical content and discussion
• Provides a common technical, business and regulatory language
• Enables the use of international standards
• Limits potential for barriers to trade
• Supports the UN Sustainable Development Goals

Individual MoU partner countries in Africa include Algeria, Angola, Botswana, Burundi, Cameroon, Congo, Cote d’Ivoire, Egypt, Ethiopia, Gambia, Ghana, Kenya, Malawi, Mauritius, Morocco, Mozambique, Namibia, Nigeria, Rwanda, Seychelles, Senegal, Sierra Leone, South Africa, Eswatini, Tanzania, Tunisia, Uganda, Zambia and Zimbabwe.

How ASTM Standards are Used

The information below provides some examples of how various African countries are utilizing ASTM International standards in several industry sectors.

ASTM Membership Requirements

Many professionals and students in Africa have taken advantage of the opportunity to participate as members of ASTM International, which is one of the benefits of the MoU program.  Membership with ASTM International offers a wealth of opportunities, including the ability to propose modifications to the content of the standards and to make contact with some of the world’s renowned experts.  ASTM membership is open to any interested party and requests for membership applications can be addressed to the author or found on the ASTM website.

ASTM Standard Development Process

The process used by ASTM International to develop standards is extremely flexible, refined over 120 years, to accommodate a diverse collection of activities. Test methods, specifications, classifications, practices, guides, and terminology are different categories of standards offered by ASTM. Areas ranging from petroleum, steel, and plastics, to homeland security, unmanned vehicles, and sustainability have all achieved standards-based solutions via ASTM’s standard development process.

ASTM receives a variety of requests for new standards development activities ranging from the development of a single standard to the formation of a new main technical committee. It’s important to note that not all requests ultimately reach fruition. As the organizational process evolves, it may be determined that the stakeholder’s interest is insufficient, other standards may exist that satisfy the particular need, or that it is premature for a consensus standards program. When a request is initially submitted, ASTM maps the scope and subject area to its existing committee population. If ASTM can find an appropriate venue, it coordinates the proposed activity with the officers of the committee and subcommittee(s) in question. If the request covers an area unrepresented within ASTM, the staff will proceed with their new organizational activity process.

All technical decisions regarding a proposed activity are made by the appropriate committee members who are technical experts from industry, government, academia, and consumers, not by the ASTM staff. Specific staff resources and activities include the following:

• Staff management and administrative support for all technical committees
• Professional editing
• Providing templates for new standards
• Web-based collaborative areas for pre-ballot standards work
• Web conferencing
• Electronic submittals and balloting of standards
• Product and Personnel Certification Services
• Interlaboratory study program
• Training and symposia services

Should there be a need to revise an existing ASTM International standard, to closely meet specific needs, the first step is to contact the chair of the subcommittee with jurisdiction over the document in question to explain the rationale for that proposed change.  The request will trigger the formation of a task group to develop a revision. If it is not known which subcommittee has jurisdiction, the staff manager should be contacted or the ASTM International website should be searched to locate the specific committee, subcommittee, and staff manager for all approved ASTM International standards.

There are many different roles within the ASTM standards development process including: ASTM technical committee members, technical contacts for work items, subcommittee and main committee officers, and attendees at meetings. The ASTM Regulations’ Appendix B: ASTM International Responsibilities of Membership are intended to assist members in the ASTM process in executing their respective roles and responsibilities. Because no single set of guidelines can address every possible situation, ASTM members and visitors attempt to act in a manner which is consistent with the mission of ASTM and its policies, as well as the spirit of these guidelines. Concerns regarding member responsibilities are reviewed and resolved by the appropriate officers of the technical committee.

Once approval has been received from the subcommittee to begin a revision, a new work item should be registered using the registration form in the “Members Only” area of the ASTM website.  An electronic version of the ASTM standard are sent to the requester in Microsoft Word. Ballot submittal instructions are included along with the Word document. It should be noted that if any problems arise during the revision process, the staff manager of the committee will be available to resolve them.

The ballot must contain a cover letter explaining the reason for the proposed action. Examples of such reasons are the following:

• Request by an organization or individual for a new standard
• Substantive changes made in response to negative votes or comments on a previous ballot
• Request for revisions to a standard
• Any other circumstance prompting a subcommittee ballot

Subcommittee ballots are conducted by ASTM headquarters. The ballot results, negatives, and comments are included in a closing report which all subcommittee members can access via the ASTM website once the ballot is closed.  Sixty percent of the official voting members must return ballots before the ballot can close. Abstaining votes are counted for the requirement.  An affirmative vote of at least two-thirds of the combined affirmative and negative votes cast by the official voting members on each ballot item is required for a successful ballot of that item. Abstentions do not count in the calculation.

Negative votes received on subcommittee ballots are considered by the subcommittee that initiated the item. If substantive changes to the document are made in response to a persuasive negative vote, the item must be re-balloted. If, however, all negative votes are withdrawn or ruled not related or not persuasive, the item may go on to main committee ballot assuming all other ballot requirements are met.

The ASTM Regulations mandate that all negative votes must be considered, and proper consideration of negative votes cast throughout the ballot process demands that due process be afforded to all negative voters. Negative votes received on subcommittee ballots are considered by the subcommittee that initiated the ballot item. Negative votes received on main committee ballots are considered by the subcommittee that initiated the ballot item and, if necessary, by the main committee. The subcommittee chair report at the main meeting must report on these negative votes and the subcommittee’s consideration of them, including rationales for any action taken and vote counts on motions. At the main meeting, the committee chair must allow discussion before taking a vote on any motions to uphold the actions of the subcommittee. A hand count of official voting members must be taken on these motions. The votes are recorded, along with the reasons for the motion, in the minutes.

After a standard has successfully cleared the three levels of peer review provided by ASTM (subcommittee, main committee, and Society), it is assigned a fixed alphanumeric designation and receives an official approval date. The document is then considered to be an ASTM standard and is capable of being cited in contractual language, referenced by a code body, or mandated by a state or local government.  Average development time for a new standard is approximately 18 months and eight months for a revision of a currently approved standard.

During the main committee ballot and Society Review, the ASTM editorial department works to ensure that the standard is in the correct format and is correctly tagged using Standard Generalized Markup Language (SGML).

Approximately eight weeks after a standard is approved, it is available for distribution as a stand-alone document in a variety of media (email, fax, hard-copy) and may be purchased from ASTM International via customer service (610-832-9585) or the ASTM International website (www.astm.org). All ASTM International standards are housed in specific volumes of ASTM’s annual book of standards.  Several translations of ASTM standards are also available for sale and can be found by visiting the Standards and Publications pages of the ASTM website.  

Proficiency Testing Programs

ASTM proficiency testing programs are statistical quality assurance programs that enable laboratories to evaluate & improve performance, as well as maintain and fulfill mandatory accreditation requirements.  As a proficiency testing program participant, laboratories receive different samples (representative of the product line) for each test cycle, electronic data submittal forms, and test instructions. The laboratory performs the test they normally conduct within their own facility using the specified ASTM methods cited in the program. Upon completing the tests, each laboratory electronically submits their test data to ASTM for use in generating statistical summary reports. 70 laboratories from 15 different African countries, are already participating in 35 different programs.

Visits of International Delegates to ASTM International

In 2019, ASTM staff met with a delegation of international experts at the Bi-annual meetings of ASTM committee D02 on petroleum products, liquid fuels, and lubricants in New Orleans, LA, USA. The visit focused on learning more about the U.S. standardization system, ASTM’s standardization process, and specifically ASTM standards for petroleum products. The delegation included experts from the petroleum industry globally, some of whom were traveling to the meetings on business and others who were participating in ASTM led programs.  ASTM regularly offers capacity building activities both in-person and online.

Opportunities for delegations or individuals to visit ASTM International are available to representatives of industry and government. These visits are for those who wish to use or better understand ASTM International standards and/or contribute to the content of the ASTM standards to reflect local market and regulatory needs.  Participants can meet with technical experts in their field and develop a network of contacts.  A typical program includes eight to ten participants who are technical experts within a sector or technical field.  Costs are covered primarily by the participants’ sponsoring industry or government, although ASTM staff plans and executes these programs, including key site visits, for which it does not charge the participants.

ASTM and ARSO will continue to take steps to encourage and support greater African participation in ASTM standards development activities and in laboratory proficiency testing programs. Together they will pursue professional exchange programs for ARSO experts to come to ASTM International Headquarters for extended study of the ASTM International standards development process. 

About the Author

Mr. Jim Olshefsky has worked at ASTM International for 22 years supporting the development and promotion of voluntary consensus standards for materials, products, systems and services.  In 2007, Mr. Olshefsky assumed the role of Director of External Relations where he helps to facilitate ASTM’s international outreach within ASTM’s Global Cooperation Department.  Mr. Olshefsky supports ASTM’s Memorandum of Understanding program with developing countries and his work is focused in Latin America, the Caribbean, and the Middle East.  His contributions include speaking to international audiences, students, and educators to promote the use of ASTM standards worldwide and to encourage increased standards education at universities.  Prior to moving to Global Cooperation, he directed ASTM’s Committee Services Department in the Technical Committee Operations Division and spent several years as a Staff Manager of various ASTM technical committees.  Mr. Olshefsky has a BS degree in Business Logistics from the Pennsylvania State University.

More information on the MoU program can be found on the ASTM International Web site (www.astm.org/GLOBAL) or contact Mr. Jim Olshefsky at jolshefsky@astm.org

Dr. Ben Manyido, Director General, Uganda National Bureau of Standards (UNBS) welcomes delegates to the 26^th ARSO General Assembly Events to be hosted by the Government of the Republic of Uganda, through the UNBS.

Sudan. Dr Sharif Mohamed Sharif appointed the New Directeur General of Sudanese Standards and Metrology Organisation (SSMO). SSMO has its headquarters in Khartoum. A part from ARSO, SSMO is a member of ISO, the African Regional Organization for Standardization (ARSO), the Arab Standards and Metrology Organization (ASMO), and Codex Alimentarius Commission, the Arab Industrial and Mining Organization (AIDMO), the Islamic Institute for Standardization, the International Institute for Cereal Science and Technology (ICC), African Electro-technical Standardization Commission (AFSEC), International Organization for legal metrology (OIML), an affiliate member of IEC. Besides being the focal point for SPS and TBT WTO Agreements. SSMO also signed several; bilateral agreements with the following: the Kenyan Bureau of Standards (KEBS), the Korean Agency for Standardization (KATS), the Jordan Institution for Standards and Metrology (JISM), the Syrian Arab Organization for Standardization and Metrology (SASMO), the Egyptian Organization for Standardization and Quality (EOS), the Saudi Arabia Standards Organization, the Syrian Standards Organization (SASO), Emirates Authority for Standardization (ESMA), Turkish National Center for Standardization (TSE), Libyan National Center for Standardization (LNCSM), General Administration for Chinese Standards (SAC),Uganda National Center for Standardization (UNBS), Tunis National Institute for Standardization (INORPI) and the in the process of signing with the Ethiopian Standards Authority (QSAE).

The UN General Assembly in its 74th Plenary held on the 6th April, 2017 declared 27th June as Micro, Small and Medium-sized Enterprises Day, recognizing the importance of Micro, Small and Medium-sized Enterprises in achieving sustainable development goals and in promoting innovation, creativity and sustainable work for all.  with this, Economic and Trade policies are becoming alive to the fact that Investing in SMEs is a long-term and smart strategy, with sustainable returns that multiply across societies, as the world over, SMEs are the cornerstone of most economies. They account for about half of global gross domestic product (GDP) and 60 %–70 % of employment. In Africa, they make up the lion’s share of enterprises and hire a large portion of the workforce, mainly the poorer, more vulnerable segments of society, such as youth and women. Investing in them will make them contribute more to GDP growth because of increased SME productivity, and it would mean better jobs and higher pay in the low-wage segments of the economy. Their increased competitiveness and productivity, through Policy reform, development of the trade support ecosystem and capacity building, including better regulatory environment and adopting of the Quality culture, standardisation, can contribute to solving one of Africa’s greatest socio-economic challenges, unemployment, poverty and hunger. It is estimated that Africa’s workforce will increase by a staggering 910 million people between 2010 and 2050, of which 830 million will be in sub-Saharan Africa.  The ARSO SMEs Standardisation programme (including, the Made in Africa Expo, the African Day of Standardisation Forum, Simplified outreach Materials, Capacity Building and Training Workshops, and involvement in African Industries in the ARSO Standards Development and Harmonisation projects) seeks to addresses some of the, following barriers highlighted below by Experts (Henk J. de Vries et al. 2013, New opportunities – Improving SME access to standards- https://www.iso.org/news/2013/02/Ref1711.html; SME Competitiveness: Standards and regulations matter http://www.intracen.org/uploadedFiles/intracenorg/Content/Redesign/Projects/SME_Competitiveness/Part%20I.pdf,; UNCTAD/ITE/TEB/2005/1- improving the competitiveness of SMEs through enhancing productive capacity, BSI):

1.  Barriers Restricting SMEs’ Awareness of Standards
2. lack awareness of the importance of standards for their own company or the potential added value of standards
3. Barriers Restricting SMEs’ Use of Standards
4. Once SMEs know that standards exist that can be useful for their company, they may then face problems in finding and tracing relevant standards  Selecting which among the standards require a good measure of market intelligence and contact with buyers as well as experience in assessing the relative demands, costs, and benefits of each—something for which there is almost no data whatsoever;
5. Finding the right standard, interpreting the text, implementing the standards and for solving those problems. Education is part of the solution. For Obtaining standards, the process may still not be easy and straight-forward. Even after, obtaining, SMEs may then face problems in understanding the standards as a result of difficult technical content, technical language, non-availability of a version in the national language, too many references to other standards, insufficient information to highlight the differences from the previous version of the standard, or a lack of information about the context of the standard.
6. On implementation, SMEs may then have difficulties in implementing standards because of their complexity, a lack of knowledge, skills or resources to do so. Many of the barriers and issues faced here are similar to those mentioned above, in that understanding is a first step to effectively using a standard. Outreach.
7. The reason for the implementation of a standard is to achieve business goals, and it is important that SMEs are able to evaluate the implementation of these standards and the impact of their use. However, the management of smaller firms is largely involved in the daily operational practice, and there is little time or money available for activities that are not directly related to this primary process. Further, SMEs may not find the time, or have the ability to assess the implementation of standards, meaning that they will not fully identify or understand the benefits of implementation, learn from the experience or modify their implementation as a result.
8. Barriers Restricting SMEs’ Participation in Standards Development
9. SMEs may also face a sequence of barriers, each of which may hinder them from benefiting from becoming involved in the process of standardisation (i.e. the development of standards). On the other hand, SMEs may be aware of standards but not realised that they can actively participate and influence the development process. Once SMEs are aware of the fact that they can become actively involved in standardisation, they may not be aware of the importance of participation or its potential benefits. This problem has two sides: low awareness amongst SMEs and employees, and a failure to create awareness through appropriate and sufficient communication activities. Once SMEs are aware and interested in the development of standards, they may face problems in tracing relevant standards development projects. An important reason for non-participation and not becoming involved in standardisation is simply being unaware of the standardisation process. Lack of resources (money, time, skills and knowledge) is another reason, where the costs of participation in terms of the time required, travel expenses and membership fees can be proportionally higher for SMEs.

Highlights of the 25^th ARSO General Assembly Events – 17^th -21^st June 2019 –:

ARSO held the annual ARSO Week, the 25^th ARSO General Assembly in Nairobi, Kenya on 17^th – 21^st June 2019 at Panari Hotel, with the events including:

1. 60th ARSO Council and the 3^rd ARSO Champions meeting – 17^th – 18^th (Monday-Tuesday) June 2019 (ARSO Council and Champions members only).
2. One day forum for the Africa Day of Standardisation and the Opening of the 25th ARSO General Assembly Events – 19^th (Wednesday) June 2019 (all invited members and stakeholders).
3. One day Meeting for the 25th ARSO General Assembly – 20^st (Thursday) June 2019(all invited members and stakeholders).
4. Industrial visits and other related social events organised by the Host – 21^st (Friday) June 2019 (all invited members and stakeholders).
5. The Made in Africa Expo to run concurrently with the events from 17th – 21st (Monday – Thursday) (June 2019.

The events, hosted by the Government of the Republic of Kenya, through the Kenya Bureau of Standards were attended by representatives from twenty-four (24) member States, Algeria, Benin, Botswana, Burkina Faso, Cameroon, Democratic Republic of Congo, Ethiopia, Egypt, Ghana, Kenya, Liberia, Madagascar, Malawi, Namibia (Proxy Zambia), Nigeria, Rwanda, Senegal, Sierra Leone, South Africa, Tanzania, Togo, Uganda, Zambia and Zanzibar (Observer member) and Policy Makers, Regulatory Bodies,  Automotive Industry Experts/Stakeholders, representatives from national regional, Continental and International Organisations (AAS, AMC Group Africa, AFREXIM BANK,  AFRAC, AFSEC, AFRIMETS, African Union, AFNOR, BSI, CEN-CENELEC/SIS, COMESA, DNVGL, ECOWAS,GSO, DNVGL, IEC, Intertek, ISO, ITU, KCFCS, KABM, KENAS, KATS/Korea,  KOFINAF, NEPAD, NRCS,PTB, RNF,  SAC, SMIIC, TMEA, UL, UNECA, UNIDO.

The opening ceremony was presided over by Hon. Mr. Peter Munya, the Kenyan Cabinet Secretary for Trade, Industries and Cooperatives, and addressed by Dr. Oswald Dr. Chinyamakobvu, Senior TBT/SPS Expert, African Union Commission, ARSO President, Dr. Eve Gadzikwa, KEBS Managing Director, Mr. Bernard Njiraini (addressing the delegates), and the ARSO Secretary General, Dr. Hermogene Nsengimana.

Mr. Munya emphasised on the importance of the AfCFTA as a key African Agenda 2063 Flagship Project that will trigger a virtuous cycle of more intra-African trade, which in turn will drive the structural transformation of economies from low productivity and labour intensive activities to higher productivity, with a marked  impact on Poverty reduction and significant benefits to millions of African citizens. He called on all Standardisation Stakeholders to work closely with Policy Makers to address the challenges posed by TBTs within the opportunities under AfCFTA Protocol.Hon. Peter Munya (center), together with the ISO President, Mr. Eddy Njoroge, 2^nd Right and Dr. Nsengimana, 2^nd left, following proceedings of the African Day of Standardisation Forum.

Dr. Chinyamakobvu outlined the current re-orientation of policy at the Africa Union, with the African Quality Infrastructure development being given high priority, under the Pan African Quality Infrastructure (PAQI). Dr. Eve Gazikwa emphasised the integral part being played by Quality Infrastructure in the implementation of the Free Trade Areas and called on the Standardisation community in Africa to collaborate in strengthening Quality Infrastructure in Africa’s. Mr. Bernard Njiraini emphasised on the role of the African National Bureau Standards (NSBs) on the implementation of the AfCFTA, while Dr. Nsengimana highlighted the strategic role of ARSO and the importance of the partnerships among the various Stakeholders, including the Private Sector and Development Partners in addressing the TBT Challenges under the AfCFTA.

In their Contributions, the ISO Secretary General Sergio MUJICA and the ISO President Elect, Mr. Edward Njoroge called on the increased, the need for strong voice of African countries in ISO Standardisation work and participation of ARSO members in the ISO Governance structures, and greater cooperation with ARSO within the opportunities in the AfCFTA Agreement and in  the ISO initiatives on Sustainable development Goals.

The African Day of Scandalisation Forum on 19^th June 2019, left no doubt that, while international trade provides opportunities for companies to benefit from important economies of scale, a proliferation of different standards and technical regulations and inconsistency in quality requirements, including the African Automotive Industry, drastically reduce these benefits. The overall recommendation of the Forum is the need for a common Regulatory Framework for Africa driven by the three global principles of “once tested (harmonised standards/equivalence policy), once certified (harmonised conformity assessment procedures), accepted everywhere (Accreditation and Mutual recognition arrangements)”, along with building Institutional Capacity and greater Awareness among African Institutions, Policy Makers, Producers and Traders (SMEs), the Academia, Consumers and the General Public, and with ARSO and the standardisation stakeholders (RECs, the AU, UNECA, Afreximbank, AfDB, NEPAD (PAQI institutions-AFRIMETS, AFRAC, AFSEC)and the Private Sector)  playing a greater role.

The Events also witnessed the signing of cooperation MoUs between ARSO and the International Trade Union (ITU) and the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) Standardization Organization (GSO), and side-line meetings on ARSO Cooperations and programmes implementation with:

• KATS especially on the discussion on the KATS-Korea invitational Training for the ARSO members scheduled for 19th – 23rd August 2019, in Seoul, Korea.
• ISO on the Regional engagement to “explore tailor-made approaches to address the needs of the ISO African members through ARSO.
• SIS – ARSO-SIS Cooperation on Strengthening Quality Infrastructure in Africa their respective ISO members.
• INBAR on the potential of standardisation to boost trade in bamboo and rattan products within the framework of the AfCFTA, and the participation of ARSO in the INBAR strategy aligned with SDGs within the INBAR Africa’s Projects dedicated Activities/Components invited training program for ARSO members
• ITU on the Standardisation opportunities, including the online solutions, within the ITU programmes and activities for the benefit of ARSO members
• SAC – on cooperation in standardisation on the Action Plan of Standard Connectivity on Building the Belt and Road (2018-2020), involving infrastructure development and investments in 152 countries and international organizations in Asia, Europe, Africa, the Middle East, and the Americas.
• UL – Discussions on the Areas of mutual interest for ARSO and UL, including the structured cooperation through signed MoU on sharing the UL standards with ARSO for reference / adoption / adaption, and the ARSO Standards education and awareness programs.

The UN General Assembly in its 74th Plenary held on the 6th April, 2017 declared 27th June as Micro, Small and Medium-sized Enterprises Day, recognizing the importance of Micro, Small and Medium-sized Enterprises in achieving sustainable development goals and in promoting innovation, creativity and sustainable work for all.  with this, Economic and Trade policies are becoming alive to the fact that Investing in SMEs is a long-term and smart strategy, with sustainable returns that multiply across societies, as the world over, SMEs are the cornerstone of most economies. They account for about half of global gross domestic product (GDP) and 60 %–70 % of employment. In Africa, they make up the lion’s share of enterprises and hire a large portion of the workforce, mainly the poorer, more vulnerable segments of society, such as youth and women. Investing in them will make them contribute more to GDP growth because of increased SME productivity, and it would mean better jobs and higher pay in the low-wage segments of the economy. Their increased competitiveness and productivity, through Policy reform, development of the trade support ecosystem and capacity building, including better regulatory environment and adopting of the Quality culture, standardisation, can contribute to solving one of Africa’s greatest socio-economic challenges, unemployment, poverty and hunger. It is estimated that Africa’s workforce will increase by a staggering 910 million people between 2010 and 2050, of which 830 million will be in sub-Saharan Africa.  The ARSO SMEs Standardisation programme (including, the Made in Africa Expo, the African Day of Standardisation Forum, Simplified outreach Materials, Capacity Building and Training Workshops, and involvement in African Industries in the ARSO Standards Development and Harmonisation projects) seeks to addresses some of the, following barriers highlighted below by Experts (Henk J. de Vries et al. 2013, New opportunities – Improving SME access to standards- https://www.iso.org/news/2013/02/Ref1711.html; SME Competitiveness: Standards and regulations matter http://www.intracen.org/uploadedFiles/intracenorg/Content/Redesign/Projects/SME_Competitiveness/Part%20I.pdf,; UNCTAD/ITE/TEB/2005/1- improving the competitiveness of SMEs through enhancing productive capacity, BSI):

1.  Barriers Restricting SMEs’ Awareness of Standards
2. lack awareness of the importance of standards for their own company or the potential added value of standards
3. Barriers Restricting SMEs’ Use of Standards
4. Once SMEs know that standards exist that can be useful for their company, they may then face problems in finding and tracing relevant standards  Selecting which among the standards require a good measure of market intelligence and contact with buyers as well as experience in assessing the relative demands, costs, and benefits of each—something for which there is almost no data whatsoever;
5. Finding the right standard, interpreting the text, implementing the standards and for solving those problems. Education is part of the solution. For Obtaining standards, the process may still not be easy and straight-forward. Even after, obtaining, SMEs may then face problems in understanding the standards as a result of difficult technical content, technical language, non-availability of a version in the national language, too many references to other standards, insufficient information to highlight the differences from the previous version of the standard, or a lack of information about the context of the standard.
6. On implementation, SMEs may then have difficulties in implementing standards because of their complexity, a lack of knowledge, skills or resources to do so. Many of the barriers and issues faced here are similar to those mentioned above, in that understanding is a first step to effectively using a standard. Outreach.
7. The reason for the implementation of a standard is to achieve business goals, and it is important that SMEs are able to evaluate the implementation of these standards and the impact of their use. However, the management of smaller firms is largely involved in the daily operational practice, and there is little time or money available for activities that are not directly related to this primary process. Further, SMEs may not find the time, or have the ability to assess the implementation of standards, meaning that they will not fully identify or understand the benefits of implementation, learn from the experience or modify their implementation as a result.
8. Barriers Restricting SMEs’ Participation in Standards Development
9. SMEs may also face a sequence of barriers, each of which may hinder them from benefiting from becoming involved in the process of standardisation (i.e. the development of standards). On the other hand, SMEs may be aware of standards but not realised that they can actively participate and influence the development process. Once SMEs are aware of the fact that they can become actively involved in standardisation, they may not be aware of the importance of participation or its potential benefits. This problem has two sides: low awareness amongst SMEs and employees, and a failure to create awareness through appropriate and sufficient communication activities. Once SMEs are aware and interested in the development of standards, they may face problems in tracing relevant standards development projects. An important reason for non-participation and not becoming involved in standardisation is simply being unaware of the standardisation process. Lack of resources (money, time, skills and knowledge) is another reason, where the costs of participation in terms of the time required, travel expenses and membership fees can be proportionally higher for SMEs.

1. ARS 1472:2018, Cleaning chemicals for use in food industry
2. ARS 1476:2018, Acidic liquid toilet cleaners — Specifications
3. ARS 1483:2018, Calcium ammonium nitrate (CAN) fertilizer — Specifications
4. ARS 1487:2018, Potassium chloride (muriate of potash) fertilizer — Specification
5. ARS 1488:2018, Potassium sulphate (sulphate of potash) — Specification
6. ARS 670-1:2019, Compressed earth blocks – Part 1 Definitions classifications specifications
7. ARS 670-2:2019, Compressed earth blocks — Part 2 Earth mortars
8. ARS 670-3:2019, Compressed earth blocks — Part 3 Test methods
9. ARS 670-4:2019, Compressed earth blocks — Part 4 Code of practice for production and construction
10. ARS 1306-1:2019, Guide for concrete — Part 1: Materials and testing
11. ARS 1307:2019, Guideline for energy efficiency in buildings
12. ARS 1308:2019, Guidelines for structural design for heavy duty pavement constructed of concrete or clay paving units
13. ARS 1336-2019, Guidelines for laying of precast concrete or clay paving units

The SDG Index score signifies a country’s position between the worst (0) and best (100) outcomes. Morocco leads the continent with a score of 66.1. Source, SDG Center for Africa’s SDG Index and Dashboards Report Summary 2018.

Goal 16 of the SDGs calls on all African member states to build effective, accountable and inclusive institutions at all levels with a focus to promote rule of law; reduce illicit flows, corruption and bribery.  The UN Secretary-General, António Gutierrez, highlights that corruption could be one of the greatest impediments to the achievement of the 2030 Agenda Sustainable Goals in Africa, and advising for strong institutions that bring together departments across sectors to analyse emerging governance and corruption challenges in Africa (UNDP 2017). José Ugaz, Chair of Transparency International (2014), has also emphasised that corruption represents a major obstacle to reaching all the SDG goals as it hampers economic growth and increases poverty, depriving the most marginalised groups of equitable access to vital services such as healthcare, education and water and sanitation.  The ARSO’s ARS 1651 (E) – Good Financial Grant practice Requirements, developed under the ARSO Technical Harmonization Committee Number 12-2 on Financial Services with Experts from across African countries and from Finance background, and  launched on 12th December, 2018, in Pretoria South Africa, is meant to facilitate Excellence in Grant Financial Management in Africa and advocating for strong and credible Financial institutions and practices to curb the war on corruption. It provides details of the requirements, specifications and criteria to be applied, to implement good financial grant practice, hence reducing the risk of corruption, bribery and fraud.

The SDGs GOAL 3 is on Good Health and Well-being, advocating for effective health care services for all. For Africa, Traditional Medicine acts as the first line of treatment for many people as Numerous traditional African medicines, due to their accessible, affordable and cultural acceptance, are undeniably, the main or only treatment of diseases or maintaining good health, as 80% – 90 % of people in Africa depend on traditional medicine for their primary healthcare (WHO, 2003) and the demand is growing at between 10 % to 20 % annually across the world. Dur to this, in its Traditional Medicine Strategy 2014-2023, the WHO aims at building the knowledge base and formulating national policies; strengthening safety, proven quality and effectiveness through regulation; and, promoting universal health coverage by integrating T&CM services and self-health care into national health systems. With this, several African countries and Regional Economic Communities (RECs) have put in place initiatives to incorporate ATM in their healthcare systems, however the regulatory framework is weak.  With Experts from all over the continent, ARSO has initiated, in 2013, a programme on developing a continental regulatory Framework for the African Traditional Medicine, including, harmonisingAfrican Standards (ARS) and developing Conformity Assessment regimes to promote quality and safety of African Traditional Medicine, through a dependable regulatory Framework.

The world is increasingly urbanising, with Africa’s urban dwellers projected to hit around a billion in 2050. This trend has resulted in mobility revolution with an increased rate of motorization, but with devastating health results in key African cities such as Cairo, Nairobi, Johannesburg, Cape Town and Dakar (Hitchcock, Conlan, Kay, Brannigan, & Newman, 2014), with the need for clean and safe mobility in Africa attracting the attention of the policy makers, owing to over reliance on used vehicles, and owing to the fact that , dirty air in Africa could be killing 712,000 people a year, prematurely, compared with approximately 542,000 from unsafe water, 275,000 from malnutrition and 391,000 from unsafe sanitation (Dr Rana, 2016).

The United Nations (UNEP) is leading several global partnerships supporting a shift to cleaner and more efficient vehicles, including the Global Fuel Economy Initiative, eMob – promoting electric mobility, and the Partnership for Clean Fuels and Vehicles (PCFV). The PCFV is the leading global initiative to support countries in introducing cleaner (used) vehicles standards, regulations and policies.  ARSO in collaboration with Afreximbank has initiated, May 2019, under the ARSO Technical Working Group 08-4, a programme for the development of Regulatory Framework to Africa’s automotive sector, targeting the adoption of Clean Mobility solutions through standardisation. This initiative promoting transition to clean fuels and vehicle technologies, supported with harmonised continental regulatory Framework, and addresses the SDGs, 3-Good Health and Well-being; 6-Clean Water and Sanitation; 7-Affordable and Clean Energy; 11- Sustainable Cities and Communities; 13- Climate Action. The Automotive Stakeholders, held a meeting on 19th June 2019 in Nairobi, Kenya to develop roadmap for activities. First harmonisation meeting is scheduled for August 31st, 2019. 18 standards for harmonisation has been identified, with four being given the first priority:

• Evaluation of new vehicles – Vehicle model homologation, South Africa (Team Leader) & Ghana volunteered to develop the WD.
• Testing of roadworthiness of used motor vehicles – Code of practice, Zimbabwe (Team Leader) & Kenya volunteered to develop the WD.
• Code of practice – Roadside roadworthiness assessment of motor vehicles, Tanzania (Team Leader) & Zanzibar volunteered to develop the WD.
• Code of practice – Vehicle test station evaluation with Sierra Leone (Team Leader), Nigeria and Rwanda volunteered to develop the WD.