Harnessing Quality for Global Competitiveness in Eastern Europe and Central Asia

Jean-Louis Racine

Description

Standards are everywhere, yet go mostly unnoticed. They define how products, processes, and people interact, assessing these entities' features and performance and signaling their level of quality and reliability. They can convey important benefits to trade, productivity, and technological progress and play an important role in the health and safety of individual consumers and the environment.
Firms' ability to produce competitive products depends on the availability of adequate quality-support services. A "national quality infrastructure" denotes the chain of public and private services (standardization, metrology, inspection, testing, certification, and accreditation) needed to ascertain that products and services introduced in the marketplace meet defined requirements, whether demanded by authorities or by consumers.
In much of Eastern Europe and Central Asia, national quality infrastructure systems are underdeveloped and not harmonized with those of their trading partners. This imbalance increases trade costs, hinders local firms' competitiveness, and weakens overall export performance.
The objective of Harnessing Quality for Global Competitiveness in Eastern Europe and Central Asia is to highlight the need to reform and modernize the institutions in the region toward better quality and standards. The book ties in with much of the work done in the World Bank on the business environment, trade facilitation, economic diversification, and enterprise innovation.
The countries in the region can improve this situation, revising mandatory standards, streamlining technical regulations, and harmonizing their national quality infrastructure with those of regional and international trade partners. Most governments will need to invest strategically in their national quality infrastructure, including pooling services with neighboring countries and stimulating local awareness and demand for quality. Specifically for the countries of the former Soviet Union, the restructuring process will need to improve governance, thus eliminating conflicts of interest and providing technically credible services to the economy.

Sujets

• Quality
• Standard
• Metrology
• Technical barriers to trade
• Regulatory reform
• Industry
• Private sector development

Informations

• Publié par: world-bank-publications
• Publié le: 05 mai 2011
• Nombre de lectures: 29
• EAN13: 9780821385104
• Langue: English
• Poids de l'ouvrage: 5 Mo

Extrait

HARNESSING QUALITY
FOR GLOBAL
COMPETITIVENESS IN
EASTERN EUROPE AND
CENTRAL ASIA
Jean-Louis Racine, EditorIBRD 34198R1 SEPTEMBER 2009
This map was produced by the Map Design Unit of The World Bank.
The boundaries, colors, denominations and any other information
shown on this map do not imply, on the part of The World Bank
Group, any judgment on the legal status of any territory, or any
endorsement or acceptance of such boundaries.
RUSSIAN FED.RUSSIAN FED.RUSSIAN FED. ESTONIAESTONIAESTONIA
LALALATVIATVIATVIA
CZECHCZECHCZECH LITHUANIALITHUANIALITHUANIAPOLANDPOLANDPOLAND
REPREPREP...
BELARUS
SLOVENIA SLOVAK REP.
CROATIA HUNGARY
BOSNIA ANDBOSNIA A ND RUSSIAN FEDERATION
HERZEGOVINA UKRAINE
SERBIA ROMANIAMONTENEGRO MOLDOVA
KOSOVO
ALBANIA BULGARIA
FYR
MACEDONIA
TURKEYTURKEYTURKEY GEORGIAGEORGIAGEORGIA KAZAKHSTKAZAKHSTKAZAKHSTANANAN
ARMENIA
AZERBAIJAN
UZBEKISTAN
TURKMENISTAN KYRGYZ REP.
TAJIKISTAN
EUROPE AND
CENTRAL ASIA
This report is part of a series undertaken by the Europe and Central Asia Region of the World Bank.
Earlier reports have investigated poverty, jobs, trade, migration, demography, and productivity growth.
The series covers the following countries:
Albania Latvia
Armenia Lithuania
Azerbaijan Moldova
Belarus Montenegro
Bosnia and Herzegovina Poland
Bulgaria Romania
Croatia Russian Federation
Czech Republic Serbia
Estonia Slovak Republic
FYR Macedonia Slovenia
Georgia Tajikistan
Hungary Turkey
Kazakhstan Turkmenistan
Kosovo Ukraine
Kyrgyz Republic UzbekistanHARNESSING QUALITY
FOR GLOBAL
COMPETITIVENESS
IN EASTERN EUROPE
AND CENTRAL ASIAHARNESSING QUALITY
FOR GLOBAL
COMPETITIVENESS
IN EASTERN EUROPE
AND CENTRAL ASIA
Edited by
Jean-Louis Racine
Europe and Central Asia Region©2011 The International Bank for Reconstruction and Development / The World Bank
1818 H Street NW
Washington DC 20433
Telephone: [phone]
Internet: www.worldbank.org
All rights reserved
1 2 3 4 14 13 12 11

This volume is a product of the staff of the International Bank for Reconstruction and Development /
The World Bank. The findings, interpretations, and conclusions expressed in this volume do not
necessarily reflect the views of the Executive Directors of The World Bank or the governments
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not imply any judgement on the part of The World Bank concerning the legal status of any
territory or the endorsement or acceptance of such boundaries.
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ISBN: 978-0-8213-8509-8
e-ISBN: 978-0-8213-8510-4
DOI: 10.1596/978-0-8213-8509-8
Cover illustration: Romain Falloux
Cover design: Naylor Design, Washington, D.C.
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Racine, Jean-Louis
Harnessing quality for competitiveness in Eastern Europe and Central Asia / Jean-Louis Racine,
editor.
p. cm.
Includes bibliographical references and index.
ISBN 978-0-8213-8509-8 (alk. paper)
ISBN 978-0-8213-8510-4 (ebook)
1. Quality of products—Europe, Eastern. 2. Quality of products—Asia, Central. 3. Competition,
International. I. Racine, Jean-Louis.
HF5415.157.H368 2011
658.4’013—dc22
2010044598Contents
Contributors xiii
Acknowledgments xvii
Acronyms and Abbreviations xix
Definitions of Country Groups and Comparisons xxiii
Executive Summary 1
Support by the National Quality Infrastructure of a Country’s
Global Competitiveness 2
The Government’s Role in the National Quality Infrastructure 5
Business Competitiveness and the National Quality
Infrastructure 6
Restructuring and Improved Governance of the National
Quality Infrastructure 7
More Competitive ECA Countries 8
Upgrading of the National Quality Infrastructure 10
References 12
1. The Role of Quality and Standards for Competitiveness
and Trade 13
Opportunities and Risks of Supporting Quality Upgrading 14
Standards and Development 23
Annex: Important Global Standards 41
References 48
2. Eastern Europe and Central Asia’s Position in Quality
Competition: Not Quite There Yet 55
Measuring Quality 56
Unit Values 58
v
Quality-Sensitive Industries 66vi Contents
Quality Position as Revealed by Intraindustry Trade 70
Quality Strategies 74
Quality Rankings in ECA 75
Conclusion 77
References 79
3. The National Quality Infrastructure: Basic Framework
and Role of the Government 81
Structure of the National Quality Infrastructure in Market
Economies 82
International and Regional Coordination 89
Rationale for Public Intervention 93
References 103
4. The Building Blocks of the National Quality Infrastructure 105
What Are Standards, and How Are They Used? 105
International and Regional Integration in Standardization 117
Conformity Assessment Bodies 125
Closing the Loop with Market Surveillance 133
Scientific, Industrial, and Legal Metrology 135
International Cooperation in Metrology and Trade 139
The Role of Accreditation 142
International and Regional Integration in Accreditation 145
References 150
5. Standards and Technical Regulations in Eastern Europe
and Central Asia: A Double-Edged Sword 153
Standards and Technical Regulations in ECA 154
Improving Standards 176
Sorting Out Technical Regulations 182189
6. Conformity Assessment: Sometimes, But Not Always,
a Seal of Quality in Eastern Europe and Central Asia 191
The Market for Conformity Assessment in ECA 192
Market Surveillance in ECA 213
Supporting the Market for Standards and Conformity
Assessment 214
References 228
7. Metrology: Making Sure Everything Fits 229
Metrology in ECA 230
Upgrading Metrology Systems in ECA 253264Contents vii
8. Accreditation: Certified Once—Accepted Everywhere 265
Accreditation in Eastern Europe and Central Asia 266
Establishing Credible Accreditation Systems in ECA 288
References 297
9. Conclusion: Moving Forward 299
Incentives for Reform in Eastern Europe and Central Asia 300
Improving Governance for National Quality Infrastructure 301
Investing in the National Quality Infrastructure 308
The Way Forward 311
References 314
Appendix A: Industry Classification According to the Revealed
Quality Elasticity 315
Appendix B: Quality Indicators in Eastern Europe and
Central Asia 319
Appendix C: Copyright Issues 325
Appendix D: Accreditation Gap Analysis 327
Boxes
ES.1 Components of the National Quality Infrastructure 4
1.1 The Possibility of Industrial Upgrading through
the Virtuous Circle of High-Quality Exports 22
1.2 Positive Spillovers of Foreign Direct Investment
in Product Quality 25
1.3 Measurement as a Key Component of Modern Quality
Control Methods 35
1.4 A Critical Role for Calibration in the Former Yugoslav
Republic of Macedonia’s Major Pharmaceutical Company 36
1A.1 Implementation of ISO 9001 in a Cambodian
Nongovernmental Organization 43
1A.2 Environmental Gain from ISO 14001 for a Manufacturer
in the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia 44
2.1 ISO 9001 as an Indicator of Quality Competitiveness 58
2.2 Important Caveats on Drawing Conclusions on Quality
from Unit Values 61
3.1 Quality Upgrading: An Expensive Endeavor 96
4.1 Participation in International Standardization Committees
Is Crucial: Medical Rubber Gloves Industry in Malaysia 119
4.2 Do Developing Countries Really Need International
Standards? The “Sugar Standard” in the EAC 121
4.3 The EU’s Global Approach to Conformity Assessment 131
4.4 Lowering of Korean Firm’s Cross-Border Business Costs
because of the CIPM MRA 141viii Contents
5.1 In Ukraine, a Single National Institution Performs
a Combination of Functions That Can Lead to Conflicts
of Interest 158
5.2 Employment Generation Led by Reforms in Technical
Regulation and Testing in Serbia 166
5.3 Serious Threat to Modernization by Mandatory Standards
in Ukraine 167
5.4 Difficulty in Keeping Up with International Technical
Regulations Regime in Georgia 168
5.5 World Bank