IEC standardization and conformity assessment activities can help governments ensure the safety of their citizens, promote access to global trade, and ensure that national industries benefit from technological developments and remain competitive in the global market.
Standards provide the technical frameworks, metrics and specifications regulators can reference in legislation.
As technologies evolve, standards are revised and legislation is automatically updated.
Standards also provide governments with technical references in public tenders, lending confidence that products meet commonly agreed rules that have been developed and accepted by industry and regulators.
By incorporating IEC Standards and Conformity Assessment Systems into their regulations, governments and regulators can leverage a common platform that allows for competition based on agreed rules, adherence to safety and performance requirements and the interoperability of technical solutions.
The IEC has held two interactive meetings with regulators, industry leaders and experts in standardization and conformity assessment to develop a roadmap for more efficient working relations.
The 2018 Regulator Forum, which took place during the IEC General Meeting in Busan, focused on the renewable energy sector. The 2019 Symposium on using IEC standardization work to support medical device regulation was held during the IEC GM in Shanghai.
Many of the examples presented here are of IEC and ISO standards being used to support this international regulatory and other policy work.
IEC National Committees (NCs) are the only legitimate representative of the IEC in your country. They have an obligation to include all national stakeholders from the public and private sectors and to coordinate and represent their needs at the global level in the IEC.
The IEC structure allows for equal representation of small, medium and large countries and helps avoid that a few big interest groups are able to create an imbalance.