T + T – Normal size
The UAE won membership in the Board of Directors of the International Organization for Standardization (ISO) for the period from 2025 to 2027, after obtaining 86 votes in the third group.
The country was able to mobilize supportive votes in a way that no Arab country had ever achieved before, in previous sessions of the ISO Board of Directors.
The Ministry of Industry and Advanced Technology represented the UAE in the meetings held in Colombia, during the period from September 9 to 13.
The UAE’s winning of membership in the ISO Board of Directors reflects the international community’s confidence in the advanced capabilities of the UAE’s quality infrastructure system, managed by the Ministry, and constitutes a new addition to enhancing the UAE’s influence and position in the quality system at the international level.
fruitful cooperation
His Excellency Dr. Sultan bin Ahmed Al Jaber, Minister of Industry and Advanced Technology, said: “Winning membership in the Board of Directors of the International Organization for Standardization (ISO) would not have been achieved without the vision and encouragement of the wise leadership, and its keenness to enhance strategic cooperation between the UAE and various countries of the world.”
His Excellency added: “This win reflects the depth of the country’s diplomatic and strategic regional and international relations, and our fruitful cooperation with various countries and partners. It also comes as an affirmation of the UAE’s pioneering role in the quality infrastructure system, and its pioneering position in shaping the future of quality infrastructure at the regional and international levels.”
He said: “The success in mobilizing the largest number of voices supporting the UAE comes as a result of the country’s coordinating and integrative role, in addition to the continuous efforts to build and consolidate long-term partnerships with various countries around the world. We are confident that the UAE’s seat in the ISO will contribute to enhancing efforts for sustainable economic growth, economic diversification, and the continuous development of the national industrial system, making it more efficient and effective, which will enhance trade exchange and support the competitiveness of Emirati products in international markets.”
His Excellency congratulated the brothers in the Arab Republic of Egypt on winning the presidency of the International Organization for Standardization (ISO) for the period from 2026 to 2028, noting that this achievement is the beginning of a new phase of international integration and cooperation to build a better and more sustainable future.
Efficient and competitive
For his part, Omar Al Suwaidi, Undersecretary of the Ministry of Industry and Advanced Technology, stressed that the UAE’s winning of a seat on the Board of Directors of the International Organization for Standardization (ISO) reflects international confidence in the UAE and its advanced national capabilities in the quality infrastructure system, which is in line with the best international practices in efficiency, competitiveness and production quality.
He added: “We are proud of the regional and international confidence in the UAE and the country’s quality infrastructure system, which is one of the pillars of the National Strategy for Industry and Advanced Technology (Project 300 Billion). This victory enhances our efforts as a major partner in shaping the future of quality infrastructure at the international level, and contributes to attracting investments and supporting our national economy by enhancing trade exchange and removing technical barriers to trade.”
He pointed out that the UAE’s membership in the organization enhances its international presence in developing standardization systems and exchanging expertise, facilitating the access of Emirati products to various markets around the world, in addition to disseminating the best Emirati and Gulf practices in the field of standardization, and enhancing the competitiveness of Emirati industrial products within regional and international supply chains.
International trust
Dr. Farah Al Zarouni, Assistant Undersecretary for the Standards and Legislation Sector at the Ministry of Industry and Advanced Technology, headed the UAE delegation to the International Organization for Standardization (ISO) meetings, stressing that the UAE’s mobilization of supportive voices was unprecedented in previous sessions for any Arab country, reflecting the international confidence the country enjoys in terms of the capabilities of the UAE’s quality infrastructure system.
She added that through membership in the Board of Directors of the International Organization for Standardization, work will be done to enhance cooperation with member states to develop international standardization systems that meet the needs of production and service sectors, facilitate the access of products to new markets around the world, support the state’s goals and the United Nations’ goals for sustainable development, and enhance sustainability in industry, trade and services.
She explained that the UAE applies more than 27,000 standard specifications and technical regulations that support the outputs of the industrial and service sectors, future industries, education, advanced technology, agriculture, sustainability, environment and others. There is no doubt that the UAE membership will enhance integration efforts with member states to unify and harmonize new developments in the standardization system and international practices, and reach leading positions that support the UAE’s competitiveness.
The UAE’s acquisition of a seat on the Board of Directors of the International Organization for Standardization (ISO) reflects the country’s efforts and commitment to promoting a knowledge-based and innovative economy, in support of the objectives of the National Strategy for Industry and Advanced Technology (300 Billion Project), which supports the creation of an attractive business environment for investors, supports the growth of national industries, and enhances their competitiveness, thus consolidating the UAE’s role in enhancing the competitiveness of products and services in international markets, and contributes to attracting more investments that support national economic diversification plans.
167 countries are members of ISO
The International Organization for Standardization (ISO) was founded in 1947. It is an international non-governmental organization, headquartered in Geneva, Switzerland, with 167 member countries. It supports the development and establishment of international standards to ensure the quality, safety and efficiency of products, services and systems.
ISO certificates are issued in many fields, most notably the industrial sector. ISO certificates confirm the efficiency of management systems, manufacturing processes and services, in accordance with the requirements of standardization and quality assurance, which supports trade exchange, facilitates trade movement between countries, and removes any unjustified technical obstacles to trade movement.
