About Us
SIS department for International Development Cooperation works closely with other countries in public, private partnerships to enhance their capacity to be active and partake in international standardisation. International standards give increased opportunities for trade, policy making and sustainable development.
ISO Global relevance is an important goal of the International Standards Organisation (ISO), where SIS is a member, to promote global standards that are consistent and applied and developed by as many as possible all over the world. Different stakeholders from the industry and civil society meet within ISO to find solutions on global problems related to trade, safety, reliability and sustainability. However, not all countries have the possibility to contribute and use international standard to the same extent. Countries from the south have generally been underrepresented in the international standard development process. This gives standards that are not adjusted to their conditions and thus not adopted, consequently they often consider standards as trade barriers and do not gain from the benefits standards can give. Using standards does not suit its own purposes it is important as this can increase trade and in turn contribute to better conditions in these countries.
However for standards to be efficient it is vital that countries and their businesses and civil society actively influence standards that serve their needs. This through enhanced active participation in standardization and by adopting the standards. Enhanced participation by more countries creates better and mutual understanding and cooperation within the international standardisation community and increases the exchange of knowledge and relations. Studies from several countries show a positive link between economic growth and the improved dissemination of knowledge made possible by standardisation. Sweden as a small, export dependent country in the north has gained from participating in international standardisation and believes this could gain many more countries and people around the world.
SIS has built capacity on international standardization in developing countries since early 1950s. Our experiences range from technical assistance on the structure and organization of national standardisation bodies. To more profound assistance focused on models and concepts of fostering a stakeholder-driven standards culture, enabling countries to build up resilience and competitive advantages at the global market.
Please see SIS International Development Cooperation Timeline.
Are you interested to know more about our work? Do you have an idea that you think is of interest for us?
Do not hesitate contact us or manager at the International Development Cooperation Department at SIS:
Fredric Stany
firstname.surname@sis.se
+46(0)8-555 520 18
+46(0)72-7126722