The National Institute for Standardization and the German National Institute of Metrology held the first consultative meeting for the implementation of the new technical cooperation project, which is titled “Strengthening Metrology to Improve the Competitiveness of the Egyptian Economy” SMIC”

The project aims to enhance capabilities and add new services to the list of services provided by the National Institute for Standardization to new clients in the agri-food sector manufactured in Egypt. This includes providing technical competency tests and providing metrological support, by producing documented reference materials aimed at meeting the needs of Egyptian actors. Allowing these entities to test their products in the National Institute of Standards laboratories, according to international quality standards, which will improve trade at the national level as well as exports, and this will lead to better quality assurance of products and processes in the processed food sector, thus enhancing food safety. 

The current project focuses on developing the private sector in the region, within the framework of a program consisting of many cooperation projects between the Egyptian and German governments. The cost of the project amounts to one million euros, funded by the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ). 

The first consultative meeting dealt with reviewing the details of the project, and exchanging views on project design between invited representatives from the processed food sector and quality infrastructure for Egypt. 

The advisory Council is an informal body that acts as an advisory and informational system for the project. It also works after the end of the project in the form of a long-term exchange network to achieve more cooperation between the various parties. 

The first advisory Council meeting was attended by representatives of the German National Institute of Metrology (PTB), representatives of the National Institute for Standardization (NIS) and representatives of Egyptian bodies that play an important role in the field of food processed from them (the National Food Safety Authority, the Center for Technology of Food Industries and Agricultural Processing, the Central Laboratory for Analyzing Residues of pesticides and heavy elements in foods, Chamber of Food Industries, Export Council for Food Industries, Export Council for Agricultural Crops, Industry Modernization Center, Al-Wadi Group of Companies) as well as quality infrastructure institutions including (the National Council for Accreditation, the General Organization for Export and Import Control, the Assay Stamping Authority and scales).

It is worth noting that the German National Institute of Metrology is considered one of the largest metrology institutions in the world, and it implements many projects related to quality improvement all over the world, and the institute has a long history of cooperation with the National Institute for Standards.