On 23 September, SBS Director Maitane Olabarria took part in a webinar organised by the African Organisation for Standardisation (ARSO) on the topic “Fostering the SMEs trade competitiveness through standardisation: Helping SMEs to be an Engine of Trade, Growth, and Employment under the AfCFTA and the Role of Standardisation”.
Providing the EU perspective, Ms Olabarria highlighted the importance of using SME networks (associations), ensuring adequate funding to enable the participation of SMEs in standardisation and offering support and guidance for the best use and wider uptake of standards by them.