Commonwealth Standards project signed for PNG

The PNG government launched the Commonwealth Standard Network Project for the country on Thursday.

The United Kingdom has provided funding for the development of the CSN in PNG, worth 3 billion kina.

The CSN can empower and provide PNG’s national standards experts the opportunity to have a voice in the international standards community.

Minister for Commerce and Industry, Wera Mori signed off on the project launching, saying the CSN is a start to building PNG’s capacity in areas such as bio-security.

In a brief ceremony on Thursday evening, documents were signed between the Minister for Commerce & Industry Wera Mori, representatives of the National Institute of Standards and Industrial Technology, and Alain Peyre, Team leader of the British Standards Institution.

Minister Mori said the CSN is a start to building PNG’s capacity in areas such as bio-security arrangements; the kind of measures that are at New Zealand and Australian standards.

“This will provide all the certification, so this is basically the major step forward as we don’t have the capacity to do to,” Mori said.

PNG is among 5 developing Commonwealth countries receiving this technical assistance to gain the skills necessary to support domestic standards development and use international standards effectively for trade.

“Basically to build capacity and bring best practices in terms of standards and certification and methodology to delivering services,” he said.

The main challenge, according to the National Institute of Standards and Industrial Technology, is building a good workforce that can deal with these standards – one that can effectively and constantly move with the world.

“If we have an effective dynamic team that can constantly move with the world, we can meet the standards of developed commonwealth nations, that’s why we are in this program,” he added.

Author: 
Salome Vincent