The development of effective technical regulations has been a hot topic at an on-going seminar in Shenzhen at the APEC Sub-committee on Standards and Conformance (SCSC).

The seminar, the second of the SCSC in 2001, has attracted 63 participants from 19 APEC members, making it the largest in scale among all the related meetings of the APEC Second Senior Officials' Meeting, which started here Saturday.

Participants discussed methods and policies for exploring good regulatory practice, especially the development and application of technical regulations among APEC member economies.

The SCSC, the biggest and most complex sub-committee under the APEC Committee on Trade and Investment, was established in 1993 to promote the adoption of standards and conformance, and to harmonize the regulations and conformity assessment among APEC members to achieve mutual supervision and verification.

With rapid development and numerous achievements, the SCSC, since its establishment, has played an important role in promoting trade in the Asia-Pacific region, especially in tearing down non- tariff trade barriers.

China has always supported the work of the SCSC and China's State Administration of Quality Supervision and Quarantine became a SCSC member in 1994.

According to Zhao Linhua, head of the Chinese delegation to the SCSC seminar, China has so far participated in three SCSC agreements respectively on food quality verification, information exchange on the safety of toys, and mutual recognition on electric and electrical products.

A project undertaken by China on the research of food labeling laws, regulations and standards among APEC members has been finished and a relative report delivered at the SCSC first annual seminar in Beijing in February won wide praise.

Also at the first SCSC seminar, a project on the quarantine of animals and plants was listed as part of the working content of the SCSC and was undertaken jointly by China and Mexico. A scheme in this respect is expected to be discussed and adopted at the current SCSC seminar, according to Zhao.

(Xinhua 05/27/2001)