The Emirates Authority for Standardisation and Metrology (ESMA) has unveiled details of the upcoming ISO 31st General Assembly.

The event will be held from October 12 to 17, 2008, at the Grand Hyatt Dubai.

During a press conference at the Grand Hyatt, ESMA outlined its plans to put Dubai on the world map in the field of international standards and best practice.  More than 500 delegates, representing the ISO’s 157 member countries are expected to attend.

This event, organised in cooperation with DNATA World of Events, comes to Dubai in recognition of its commitment to abide by the highest standards in different fields, as set by the ISO, and reflects the confidence of ISO and all its members in both the UAE’s capabilities and ESMA’s proven track record in regulating standards.

To prepare and manage the event, ESMA has formed a higher organising committee, including local and federal government departments.

ISO’s current portfolio includes more than 17,000 international standards, and more than 1,800 of these are adopted as UAE standards by ESMA. These standards are part of the UAE’s development strategy and play an important role in integrating the UAE’s economy with the global economy.

An annual event, this year’s General Assembly will put the spotlight on the contribution of standardisation to construction issues, drawing on the UAE’ status as one of the world’s leading construction hubs.

ESMA is the ISO member for the UAE and since its inception in 2001, it has been at the forefront of initiatives in the construction industry, as well as ensuring that services, consumer products and materials in all sectors confirm to approved standards.

Attending the launch were ESMA chairman and UAE Minister of Economy Sultan bin Saeed Al Mansoori and UAE Minister of Environment and Water Dr Rashid Ahmad bin Fahad, as well as other  officials from ESMA, including director of ESMA Waleed bin Falah Al Mansouri and director of Metrology, ESMA and General Coordinator for ISO Dubai 2008 Mohamed Ahmed al Mulla.

The five-day event will create awareness within the UAE about the importance of international standards, as well as provide a forum for the ISO members to make strategic decisions.

The general assembly will highlight key issues facing the UAE, in addition to issues facing other countries, at various stages of development.

The event is exclusively for delegates appointed by ISO members and representatives of invited international organisations. The ISO’s wide-ranging standards are developed by 201 committees made up of more than 2280 groups of specialists around the world.

The general assembly will be a forum for the Committee on Developing Country Matters (Devco) and the Technical Management Board (TMB) to meet. The ISO council, which develops the proposals for ISO members to discuss, will meet on the final day of the General Assembly.

The first formal General Assembly was held in Paris in 1949. Last year’s General Assembly was held in Geneva. Dubai follows in the footsteps of leading cities, such as Singapore, Ottawa and Buenos Aires, which have hosted the event.

Membership of ISO is open to national standards institutes most representative of standardisation in their country and only one national standards institute in each country can be a member. – TradeArabia News Service