UNIDO, EU and Armenia jointly celebrated the World Metrology Day 2023

The United Nations Industrial Development Organization (UNIDO), the European Union (EU) Delegation to Armenia, and the National Body of Standards and Metrology (NBSM) of Armenia jointly celebrated the World Metrology Day 2023, being held under the theme "Measurements supporting the global food system" in Yerevan on May 19, 2023. Over 70 representatives from the public and private sectors in Armenia joined the celebration and learnt about the importance of local metrology services for a well-functioning food system.

During the event, the latest development of the quality infrastructure system for food safety in Armenia was presented, while how metrology contributes to efforts by various public and private actors in this regard was highlighted. As the National Metrology Institute, NBSM also presented the achievements that Armenia made in developing its capacity and providing needed service to the society in collaboration with international partners. Besides, a dedicated workshop was organized with support of UNIDO, aiming to raise awareness of participants on metrological requirements for prepackaged products focusing on the EU system.

 “The reforms in the sector are continuing and we aim to bring all elements of quality infrastructure to the internationally recognized level,” Albert Babayan, the Director of NBSM mentioned in his opening speech.

 “Compliance with rigorous metrology standards is essential for the Armenian food industry to gain consumer trust and access international markets. Alignment with EU requirements will allow food companies in Armenia to improve their competitive edge. We welcome the efforts of Armenia in reforming and improving the national metrology system and we are supportive in this process,” highlighted Frank Hess, the Head of Cooperation of the EU Delegation to Armenia.

 “The vision embedded in the Metre Convention, its universal principles are still relevant today,” said Zhanna Zakaryan, the Head of the Department of Quality Infrastructure Development, MoE.

The WMD 2023 celebration was supported by UNIDO through the project “Support to Quality Infrastructure in Armenia” which is funded by the EU. The project is to develop capacity of NBSM in order to provide sustainable and internationally recognized metrology services to stakeholders within the country, ultimately supporting Armenia to implement the CEPA Agreement with the EU for improved trade competitiveness and meaningful utilization of the benefits.