The Asean Consultative Committee for Standards and Quality-Working Group on Legal Metrology (ACCSQ-WGLM) is a grouping of legal metrology authorities in Asean. This Working Group was formed by the First and Second ASEAN Seminar on Legal Metrology in Chiangmai, Thailand and Taipei , Chinese Taipei in the year 1999 and 2000 respectively. In March 2001, the ACCSQ-WGLM was established by the endorsement of the 17th ACCSQ Meeting in Phuket, Thailand as a Working Group under ACCSQ to discuss legal metrology issue.
The objectives of WGLM are:
1. To align legal metrology in ASEAN to support the objectives of the ASEAN Free Trade Area (AFTA) and to ensure that the modernization of legislation in legal metrology by ASEAN Member Countries will not result in the introduction of new technical barriers to trade.
2. To establish ASEAN cooperation in the area of legal metrology and to improve the national legal metrology systems, through cooperation in technology, human resources and management expertise.
3. To hold discussions and promote ASEAN interest in legal metrology with other national, regional and international organization.
The ACCSQ-WGLM consists of ASEAN senior officers of legal metrology authorities from Brunei Darussalam, Cambodia , Indonesia , Lao PDR , Malaysia , Singapore , Thailand and Vietnam.
The Working Group has met annually since Auckland, New Zealand in 2001, and Ho Chi Minh City Vietnam in 2002. The third of the ACCSQ-WGLM Meeting will be held in Kyoto Japan on 1st November 2003 back to back with the 10th APLMF Meeting.
Highlights of the activities of ACCSQ-WGLM in the year 2003
Harmonization of Legal Metrology Legislation and Administration
Vietnam as lead country will identify the submitted list of instruments for harmonization and will circulate the questionnaire for surveys the need of member countries, with reference to OIML Recommendation.
Harmonization of requirement for pre-packaged goods
The Workshop on Harmonization requirement for prepackaged goods held in Thailand in January 2003. The result of this workshop was reported to the 21st
ACCSQ meeting in Brunei Darussalam in March 2003. The Workshop Agreed to prepare the draft of the Recommendation of the Requirement for Prepackage Goods in ASEAN. The draft will be submitted to the 3rd meeting of WGLM in Kyoto on November 2003.
Training
Malaysia as lead country. The WGLM discussed relationship between the training course being conducted by regional and international organizations on legal metrology and agreed on the need of avoiding duplication of efforts. In this regard, WGLM noted that some ASEAN countries are not yet members of APEC, APLMF or OIML and there are in a need to look into possibility whether the said training courses could be opened to those countries as well.
Capacity Building
Indonesia as lead country will conduct the inventory of capacities of testing and calibration facilities amongst the member countries. Indonesia will circulate a questionnaire to the member countries and they would respond by middle of June 2003.
Assistance to CLM
PTB has sent a mission to Lao, PDR and Cambodia to derive supporting measures for the countries‘ metrology system.
Survey on the economic impact of legal metrology weighing and measuring instruments for trade use
The Project proposal endorsed at the 21st ACCSQ Meeting and ACCSQ will explore funding sources for the survey.
