DTI-PAB team poses with APAC Peer Evaluators following the closing meeting. Seated from left of PAB Director James Empeño are Mr. Randy Long (ANAB, USA), Ms. Yuan-Chen (Cynthia) Chen (TAF, Chinese Taipei), Dr. Chun-wah John Ho (HKAS, Hong Kong, China), Mr. Dimitros Katsieris (IAS, USA), Ms. Fariza Wan Abdullah (Standards Malaysia, Malaysia), Ms. Manisha Wickramasinghe (SLAB, Sri Lanka), and Ms. Minh Trang Ho (BOA, Vietnam).

The Philippine Accreditation Bureau (PAB) has successfully maintained its signatory status in the Asia Pacific Accreditation Cooperation (APAC) Mutual Recognition Arrangement (MRA) following a comprehensive reevaluation in January 2024. This accomplishment reaffirms PAB’s commitment to upholding international standards, enhancing global recognition of accredited Philippine entities, and supporting the country’s quality infrastructure.

As a signatory member to APAC’s MRA, PAB has demonstrated its continued compliance with rigorous APAC requirements across multiple accreditation scopes, thereby ensuring that Philippine-certified organizations meet internationally accepted standards. The reevaluation confirmed that PAB maintains its signatory status for the following scopes and sub-scopes:

  • Calibration (ISO/IEC 17025)
  • Certification – Management System Certification Bodies (ISO/IEC 17021-1) with sub-scopes in Environmental Management Systems (EMS), Food Safety Management Systems (FSMS), and Quality Management Systems (QMS)
  • Certification – Product Certification Bodies (ISO/IEC 17065)
  • Inspection (ISO/IEC 17020)
  • Medical Testing (ISO 15189)
  • Testing (ISO/IEC 17025)

PAB’s signatory status to APAC’s MRA is crucial for enabling Philippine businesses and service providers to operate within an internationally recognized framework. As an MRA signatory, PAB’s accreditations are accepted in APAC member economies, facilitating smoother cross-border trade, reducing the need for duplicative conformity assessments, and enhancing the competitiveness of Philippine products and services in the global market.

APAC, a leading regional accreditation cooperation, connects accreditation bodies from Asia and the Pacific, aiming to harmonize accreditation practices and uphold the integrity of standards-based conformity assessments across borders. Through the APAC MRA, member economies foster trust and mutual recognition of accredited bodies, which ultimately support international trade and economic growth.

The next reevaluation of PAB’s signatory status is scheduled for February 2028, underscoring PAB’s commitment to consistently meeting international standards and ensuring the competency of conformity assessment bodies in the Philippines.

For more information on the Philippine Accreditation Bureau’s services please visit www.dti.gov.ph/pab.

Release Date: 11 November 2024.

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