IAAC Highlights the Importance of Regional Cooperation During the 2025 Andean Quality Meeting

Lima, November 2025

The Inter-American Accreditation Cooperation (IAAC) actively participated in the Andean Quality Meeting, a high-level regional event organized by the General Secretariat of the Andean Community (SGCAN) to strengthen the Andean Quality System (SAC) and to present new digital tools developed with the support of the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB).

Held on 25–26 November, the event brought together government authorities, national quality infrastructure institutions, private-sector representatives, international cooperation partners, and experts in accreditation, metrology, standardization, and technical regulation. Among the participants were senior officials from INACAL (Peru), ONAC (Colombia), SAE (Ecuador) and ema (Mexico) —the latter also representing the MUSICA initiative. The livestream through the official channels of the Andean Community strengthened transparency, openness, and public access to regional technical information.

The Andean Community and Its Relevance for IAAC

The Andean Community (CAN) is a regional integration mechanism composed of Bolivia, Colombia, Ecuador and Peru, aimed at strengthening intraregional trade, competitiveness, and innovation through common policies and harmonized frameworks.

Within this framework, the Andean Quality System (SAC) —established under Decision 850— integrates the pillars of metrology, standardization and accreditation, forming the technical infrastructure that underpins trust, technical competence, and quality in products and services across the region.

For IAAC, participation in this meeting is strategically relevant because:

• The CAN is an Associate Member of IAAC, and its member economies actively participate in Multilateral Recognition Arrangements.
• The digital tools launched at the event strengthen technical interoperability and cooperation among accreditation bodies.
• The meeting supports progress toward a more robust regional system built on trust, transparency, and technical competence, aligned with inter-American and global recognition frameworks.
• It allows IAAC to align its agenda with emerging priorities in sustainability, digital transformation, gender inclusion, and market access.

Key Developments Presented at the Meeting

Throughout the two-day program, key milestones of the IDB Project RG-T3991, designed to strengthen the quality infrastructure of the Andean region, were presented. Among the most notable achievements were:

✔ Andean Register of Evaluators and Technical Experts, a regional mechanism designed to facilitate the exchange of expertise and reduce gaps in specialized human resources.
✔ Andean Search Engine for Accredited Conformity Assessment Bodies, a tool that improves access to accredited services across the region.
✔ Andean Quality Virtual Classroom, a digital platform for continuous training of evaluators, technical experts, and quality professionals.

The thematic sessions addressed priority issues for the region:

• Knowledge management and regional capacity building
• Digital transformation of the quality infrastructure
• Gender and inclusion, including the presentation of the MUSICA strategy
• Sustainability standards and market access, with active participation from IAAC
• International technical cooperation with PTB, IDB, UNIDO, COPANT and other key partners

The program also featured several high-level keynote conferences, offering strategic perspectives on the evolving challenges of the Andean quality ecosystem:

• “Building a Culture of Quality in Our Region”, delivered by José Carlos Flores Molina, Director of the Institute for Quality of the Pontifical Catholic University of Peru.
• “Sustainability and Quality: The Passport to Global Markets”, presented by Adriana Vargas, Director of Industry at ANDI (Colombia).
• “Current Guidelines in Conformity Assessment and Transparency: A Regional Perspective”, delivered by Mateo Ferrero, Counsellor on Technical Barriers to Trade at the World Trade Organization (WTO).
• “Digital Transformation in Quality Infrastructure”, presented by Carlos Echavarría, Director of the Ecuadorian Accreditation Service (SAE).

In addition, the meeting included a presentation of ANDIMET, delivered by María del Rosario González, Director of the National Institute of Metrology of Colombia (INM), highlighting advances by the Andean Metrology Network and its contribution to strengthening the SAC.

IAAC’s Participation

IAAC contributed to several components of the program, with a notable intervention by the IAAC Executive and Technical Secretary, Ferney Chaparro, in the panel:

“Challenges for the Andean Quality Infrastructure in Sustainability Standards”

During his intervention, IAAC presented its work in three strategic areas:

• IAAC Sustainability Agenda, focused on supporting the implementation of public policies and private-sector developments related to circular economy, due diligence, and emerging sustainability requirements.
• Technical Convergence Mechanisms, aimed at reducing technical barriers to trade and promoting the acceptance of conformity assessment results through harmonized strategies developed within the MLA framework.
• Engagement with Regulators, International Organizations and Economic Stakeholders, to ensure technical coherence and effective adoption of sustainability standards, in coordination with bodies such as ISO/CASCO, COPANT and SIM.

IAAC reaffirmed its commitment to supporting the Andean Community in strengthening the SAC and advancing international best practices under the Multilateral Recognition Arrangements.

“A Milestone for the Andean Quality System”

As highlighted in the official press release of the Andean Community, the meeting marked a significant step forward in the deployment of tools that will enhance competitiveness and regional harmonization in quality.

Official release:
🔗 https://www.comunidadandina.org/notas-de-prensa/presentan-herramientas-digitales-para-fortalecer-sistema-andino-de-la-calidad/

Event livestream:
▶️ https://www.youtube.com/live/6rMsVBx4giE