The Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) chaired the 9th ASEAN Trade in Goods Agreement (ATIGA) upgrade negotiation meeting for the working group on standards, technical regulations and conformity assessment procedures (WG-STRACAP) from Oct. 15 to 16, 2024.
The meeting, held in Manila and online, focused on advancing regional trade facilitation through regulatory alignment and resolving technical trade barriers.
The discussions centered on the draft of the ATIGA STRACAP Chapter, emphasizing Article 9 on conformity assessment procedures and Article 4 on incorporating the WTO’s Technical Barriers to Trade (TBT) agreement. Delegates also worked through outstanding issues in Article 14 on transparency and Article 8 on technical regulations, aiming for consensus on enhanced regulatory transparency and harmonized standards.
ASEAN member states (AMS) representatives from Brunei Darussalam, Cambodia, Indonesia, Lao PDR, Malaysia, Myanmar, Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam reviewed previous achievements and set strategic directions for working groups facilitated by the ASEAN Secretariat.
The AMS delegates reached a positive agreement on advancing the STRACAP chapter, reinforcing their commitment to smoother trade relations within ASEAN.
The Bureau of Philippine Standards (BPS) updated the trade negotiations committee on the progress, highlighting a favorable negotiation outcome for the chapter on standards and conformity assessments, underscoring ASEAN’s commitment to addressing regional trade challenges.
The meeting was the fourth ATIGA WG-STRACAP gathering this year, following previous sessions in March, June, and September, and was part of the 12th ATIGA Upgrade Negotiation Trade Negotiating Committee and Related Meetings, held in Manila from Oct. 11 to 17.
