The Ministry of Economy, in collaboration with the Romanian National Standards Body – ASRO organized on June 7th, at the Palace of Parliament in Bucharest, the High-Level Conference on European Standardization “Standards connect markets – Standards advance and deepen the Single Market”.
The event was part of the series of actions organised in the context of the Romanian Presidency of the European Council, and its purpose was to provide insight into the latest developments and on the future of European Standardization.
The high-level conference brought together legislators, representatives from industry (including SMEs), as well as other stakeholders, to discuss a variety of topics, such as the benefits of standardization to the future of the Single Market, its contribution to the digitalization of the European economy, and how to improve awareness of standardization among public authorities and academia.
Mr. Bogdan Constantin Andronic, State Secretary, who delivered the speech on behalf of the Minister of Economy, Mr. Niculae Badalau, stressed that standardization is undoubtedly a key element for the success of the Internal Market, and also he emphasized the need to adapt it to the rapid evolution caused by the technological changes.
The European Joint Initiative for Standardization, signed three years ago in Amsterdam, under the Dutch Presidency of the Council of the European Union, was celebrated as a focal point of this conference.
Ms. Elżbieta Bieńkowska, European Commissioner for Internal Market, Industry, Entrepreneurship and SMEs, sent a video message to those present that emphasized the most important achievements of this public-private partnership, highlighting several aspects: the relationship between public authorities and standardization, its role in public policy implementation, increasing the impact of public investment through efficient implementation, procurement, the need to have qualified experts in standardization to meet the demands and challenges of the industry and of the market.
The first part of the conference was entitled “Views on challenges and opportunities within the Single Market and standardisation beyond 2020” and provided an overview of strategic issues and information on the Single Market and Standardization Initiatives.
The second part of the conference focused on “Globalisation and new trends – challenges and opportunities for the Single Market and standardisation beyond 2020”. This session focused on the lessons learned so far from the standardization process, its fields, its actions and its place in securing the future, in order to enable Europe to strengthen its driving force in international standardization involving the presence of the United States and China.
Also in this context, on June 5th and 6th, with the support of the Ministry of Economy, the European standardization organizations, CEN and CENELEC, organized in Bucharest the annual General Assembly, attended by over 200 national delegates from nearly 50 countries.
Thus, it can be said that during this period, Bucharest was the European capital of standardization, and ASRO and the Ministry of Economy are honored to have contributed to the smooth running of these events.
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