ISO Secretary-General, Mr. Sergio Mujica (middle) with the participants of the DTI-BPS 6th Standards Essay Writing Contest and 2nd Poster Making Contest. With him in front are (from left to right) DTI-Fair Trade Enforcement Bureau (FTEB) Assistant Director, AD Ferdinand L. Manfoste; Bureau of Philippine Standards (BPS) Director, Engr. James E. Empeño; Regional Manager of ISO Regional Engagement Initiative (REI) – Asia, Mr. Kolin Low; BPS Assistant Director, Atty. Marimel D. Porciuncula; Consumer Protection and Advocacy Bureau (CPAB) Assistant Director, AD Lilian G. Salonga; and FTEB Director, Dir. Domingo R. Tolentino Jr.

The Secretary-General of the International Organization for Standardization (ISO), Mr. Sergio Mujica, joined the Department of Trade and Industry – Bureau of Philippine Standards’ (DTI-BPS) 6th Standards Essay Writing Contest and 2nd Poster Making Contest for students and their mentors held last 08 October 2018 at the Philippine Trade Training Center (PTTC) in Pasay City, Metro Manila. The activity served as the kickoff event for this year’s National Standards Week (NSW) celebration. The NSW is held every October 08-14 of each year and is led by the DTI-BPS as the country’s National Standards Body.

The activity, which is along-side DTI’s Radio Program, Konsyumer Atbp.’s (KATBP) Broadcasting Seminar, was attended by some one hundred fifty (150) attendees composed mostly of high school students accompanied by their mentors. The student contestants from different public schools in the National Capital Region (NCR) were selected through the assistance of the Department of Education (DepEd-NCR).

Not complete without a “groufie”. ISO Secretary-General, Mr. Sergio Mujica gamely takes a “groufie” with the students, DTI officers and personnel.

Mr. Mujica presented to the participants a brief history of the ISO, the ISO system and how standards are created. He also discussed the benefits of standards to the economy, state governance and to the consumers as well as its constructive impact to the continuous advancement of technology in the Fourth Industrial Revolution. He closed his talk with encouraging the student audience to get involved by educating themselves more on standards so that in the future, they can become the Philippine’s voice in shaping standards around the world as standards professionals.

After his presentation, the Secretary General answered several questions from the audience. A student posed what the ISO does if one or some of the technical experts working on a draft standard do not agree with it or meet consensus. Mr. Mujica clarified that meeting a consensus in the ISO system means that at least 75 percent of the technical experts working on a draft standard must agree on a draft ISO international standard.

Another question asked was, are standards imposed to the users? Mr. Mujica answered in the contrary explaining that ISO standards are complied with voluntarily by stakeholders although some governments declare some standards mandatory in their countries if they deem it necessary for the safety of their consumers.

The NSW is concurrently observed with the World Standards Day (WSD), held every 14th of October annually. The World Standards Day (WSD) celebration is piloted by the major international standardization organizations namely, the ISO, the International Electrotechnical Commission (IEC) and the International Telecommunication Union (ITU). The DTI-BPS is the official member representative of the Philippines to the ISO and IEC.

The 44^th NSW adopts the WSD theme, “International Standards and the Fourth Industrial Revolution.”

For more information on standards and standardization, please call the DTI-BPS at 751.4740 or 751.4748 or send an email to bps@dti.gov.ph for inquiries.♦

Date of Release: 29 October 2018