Tashkent, Uzbekistan (UzDaily.com) -- A regional training on capacity building of national and regional experts on quality management and development of pre-export inspection services in trade in dried fruit and vegetable products was successfully conducted during 8-12 November 2021. 

This regional training was organized in the framework of the UNDP project "Aid for Trade in Uzbekistan" together with the Austrian development organization "Hilfswerk International" (implements the project funded by the European Union).

Compliance of products with international quality standards contributes to faster establishment of trusting business relationships and concluding contracts between buyers and sellers. As noted by Kiriçioğlu Emre, an expert at the Turkish Ministry of Commerce, quality standards contribute to fair international trade, increase transparency in international and national markets, and open new opportunities for exports. "Establishment of production based on internationally agreed commercial quality standards will contribute to the growth of agricultural trade in the Central Asian region," he said.

Conducted trainings were also useful for the Agency for Technical Regulation in terms of further improvement of its activities in standardization and implementation of food products quality management systems. Mr. Askarali Askarov, Head of Department on coordination of implementation of quality management systems of the Agency for Technical Regulation of Uzbekistan, noted that these trainings are considered as a support not only for entrepreneurs, but also for agencies and departments working in the field of product quality system and exporter entrepreneurs. "Nowadays, ensuring the competitiveness of export products in foreign markets is largely determined by the appropriate quality of food products according to the requirements of international standards. As we see in practice and our daily work with domestic enterprises, compliance with quality standards opens up opportunities to export to new and promising markets," he said.

Through a five-day training, participants from the Central Asian region were trained in the practical application of international quality standards, pre-export inspection approaches for dried fruit and vegetable products to ensure compliance with international retailers' requirements. They learned useful information on relevant technical regulations, approaches and standardization practices, such as the OECD inspection scheme, as well as theoretical information on relevant product standards were explained. The theoretical knowledge acquired was reinforced by training sessions at two selected enterprises in the Tashkent region.

At the end of the training, on 15-16 November, a regional meeting of national technical groups on UNECE standards related to the marketing and quality control of agricultural products was held. 

During the meeting, participants were able to discuss a number of explanatory materials and identify further steps for their application in the Central Asian region, as well as plans for further cooperation of the National Technical Groups of the countries in the region.