The issue of Iranian products’ standard was addressed in the latest memorandum of understanding (MoU) signed between Tehran and Baghdad, as part of First Vice President, Es’haq Jahangiri’s visit to the neighboring country.
According to the MoU, Iraq has announced that all Iranian commodities which have undergone the necessary quality tests by the Institute of Standards and Industrial Research of Iran (ISIRI) do not need further quality tests before being exported to Iraq.
“The new MoU is expected to remove many obstacles in the way of exports to Iraq, but it is not tantamount to exporting low-quality products,” head of the Iranian National Standards Organization, Nayereh Piroozbakht told IRNA.
Piroozabakht, who accompanied the first vice president in his trip to the Iraqi capital, said the stringent import regulations previously imposed by the Iraqi government on exports from Iran, including quality control and inspection, posed a barrier to easy flow of goods from Iran. Accordingly, she said: “The Iranian administration entered into negotiations with the Iraqi officials a few years ago to ease the regulations.”
“The negotiations finally bore fruit as the recent MoU facilitates quality control procedures inside the Iranian borders, resulting in accelerated exports,” she said, noting that according to the new MoU, the Iraqi government recognizes the ISIRI’s standardization emblem on the Iranian products and accepts the inspection certificate issued by this institute.”
The official emphasized that the MoU is aimed at facilitating exports and urged the Iranian manufacturers and exporters to observe the highest level of standards in their export products. She underscored that ISIRI will strictly supervise the quality of commodities exported to Iraq.
As part of the MoU, Iran will also hold training courses on quality control and inspection for the Iraqi experts, she added.
First Vice-President Es’haq Jahangiri, heading a political and economic delegation, traveled to Baghdad on February 16 to attend the Iran-Iraq High Joint Commission, wherein he signed ten memoranda of understanding with Iraq’s Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi to boost bilateral cooperation.
The MOUs are mainly in the areas of trade, mining and geological surveys, tourism, road and air transportation, as well as the isue of dust storms.
