On May 20, the Standing Committee on Economic Affairs of the National Assembly discussed the draft law “On Amendments and Additions to the Law on Certification” in the first reading.

According to the information of Narek Hovakimyan, Deputy Minister of Economy of the Republic of Armenia, the need for changes and additions is due to the planned changes in certain functions of the National Accreditation Body. The project proposes to make a number of changes and additions with the aim of modernizing and improving the regulations in the field of accreditation, ensuring its compliance with international best practices and current needs. It is expected that as a result of the adoption of the project, the clarity and applicability of the regulation of the accreditation sphere will be improved, new concepts and mechanisms will be introduced, for example: conformity assessment scheme, technical assessor. Clear procedures for appeals, evaluations, and record keeping will be established. Procedures for professional analysis of conformity assessment schemes will also be established, grounds for suspension of accreditation will be increased.

The project was approved by the committee, it is planned to be discussed during the regular sessions of the National Assembly starting on May 26.

—