ISO TCM Technical Committee Set up Secretariat in China
International Organization for Standardization (ISO) decided in September 2009 to establish a new technical committee on Traditional Chinese Medicine as proposed by China. The Technical Committee is numbered TC249. Its secretariat has been allocated to China and the office was recently set up in Shanghai. The secretariat was operated by Shanghai Research Institute of Chinese Medicine under the joint direction and supervision of the Standardization Administration of the People's Republic of China (SAC) and State Administration of Traditional Chinese Medicine (SATCM). As remarked by the Director of SATCM Mr. Wang Guo-qiang in the International Conference on Standardization of Chinese Medicine last month, the establishment of TC249 was an essential and vital step in TCM development. He considered that the setting-up of TC249 illustrated the significance of CM standardization as recognized by ISO. It also reflects the increasing popularity and the profound interest in traditional medicine by people all over the world.
By now, 17 national bodies have joined ISO Technical Committee on Traditional Chinese Medicine as members, while another 11 countries participated as observers. The secretariat is organizing the first TCM Technical Committee meeting to be held in China in June 2010. The secretary of the technical committee Prof. Shen Yuan-tong revealed that China would start preparing the respective international standards for Chinese medicine (practice & drugs), acupuncture, integrative medicine, ethnic medicine etc. The introduction of CM international standards would enhance the competitive edge of the CM industry and bring further opportunities to sustain its future growth.
With the emerging market potential of traditional medicines all over the world, some form of standardization must be in place in order to ensure their identity, purity, and levels of active constituents. Japan, Korea and other western countries are playing an active part in the research and development of various standards for traditional medicine, including acupuncture, Chinese medicine, basic terminology and etc. It is crucial for China to seize the opportunity and strive to play a leading role in setting the standards for CM.
ISO is the world's largest developer and publisher of International Standards. Being a non-government organization, it launches the development of new standards in response to sectors and stakeholders and enables consensus on solutions that meet both the requirements of business and the broader needs of society. ISO standards are developed by technical committees, subcommittees or project committees (800 in total), which in turn, are supported by secretariats operated by different national bodies. ISO has more than 18,000 International Standards and other types of normative documents in its current portfolio, with about 1,000 new standards published each year. One of its most well-known standards is the ISO 9000 Quality Management Systems. China is one of the member bodies of ISO but has been lagging behind in taking up secretariat offices and standard development. The setting-up of TC249 Secretariat will help enhance its role in international standard development and promote its visibility in the ISO family.
Sources:
China Quality Net www.cqn.com.cn
Standardization Administration of the People's Republic of China www.sac.gov.cn
State Administration of Traditional Chinese Medicine www.satcm.gov.cn
International Organization for Standardization www.iso.org |
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