Harmonising the Indian and German quality infrastructure for products and services

Context

Economic relations between India and Germany have steadily deepened in recent years. The closer the economic partnership becomes, the more important it is to ensure well-functioning trade and the quality and safety of the products and services exchanged. This requires effective and internationally harmonised quality infrastructure (QI).

QI includes standardising, accrediting and measuring products and services, assessing compliance with European guidelines and monitoring the market. Within this system, experts jointly develop standards and procedures for product quality and safety.

Objective

Harmonising QI internationally reduces technical barriers to trade, promotes product safety and increases consumer and environmental protection.

Approach

The German Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs and Climate Action (BMWK) is conducting intergovernmental dialogue on QI for the global project. The Indo-German working group between the BMWK and the Indian Ministry of Consumer Affairs, Food and Public Distribution enables Germany and India to exchange information on QI.

The dialogue includes authorities, business representatives and specialist organisations from both countries. These parties define cooperation requirements annually in a work plan. Topics include digitalisation, mechanical engineering, energy, the circular economy, digital agriculture, electromobility and medical products. German experts are also supporting current regulatory reforms in India, for example on market surveillance and machine safety.

The activities of the Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) GmbH comprise the following:

• Coordinating intergovernmental political meetings and working groups
• Organising conferences, workshops and delegation visits
• Monitoring and providing information on relevant QI developments
• Disseminating best practices and information about QI through dialogue formats

Last update: December 2023