Successful cooperation with China
High-ranking Chinese officials visit DIN: Talks on current standardization issues and the intensifying of bilateral cooperation were on the agenda at the meeting with a delegation of standardization experts led by Tian Shihong, Administrator of the Standards Administration of China (SAC).
It was agreed to support the implementation of ISO's new strategy by initiating a number of joint measures and projects. These include an intensive dialogue in the light of ISO's increased presence in Asia and other regions outside of Europe. SAC and DIN both agree that the current pilot project to set up a regional ISO office in Singapore requires careful examination. A cost-benefit analysis should be made to decide whether such regional offices have the desired effect or whether there are not more suitable ways of increasing ISO's global relevance.
In China, sustainable urban development is an important issue. SAC proposes that China and Germany make use of existing town twinning partnerships to set up workshops to discuss the role of standardization in urban planning, and suggests approaching interested towns and cities.
As in the previous year, another SAC staff member will come to Berlin in mid-August for four weeks in order to learn about standardization in Germany.
In the next five years, the Chinese standardization system will undergo radical reform. The number of binding standards (comparable with technical regulations in Germany) will be drastically reduced. The aim of the reform is to increase the use of voluntary standards. The reforms are being managed by SAC, and DIN will give support by contributing its experience.
DIN's long-standing cooperation with China has been a success from the very start, and it will continue to enjoy high priority. Over the past three decades China has grown to become one of the world's leading trading nations. At the same time, Germany is China's most important European trading partner. For this reason, DIN set up an office in Beijing, China in June 2013.