Symposium about the regulatory framework of market surveillance

On 2 December 2014, the Ministry of Commerce of the People’s Republic of China (MOFCOM) and the German Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs and Energy (BMWi) jointly hosted a symposium about the legal framework and organization of market surveillance in China and Germany. The symposium in Beijing was opened by Mr. Joachim Geiß, Deputy Head of Division, Industrial Policy Department, BMWi, together with Ms. Liu Hong, Head of Division, Department of Treaty & Law, MOFCOM. Both sides stressed the importance of facilitating the exchange of information and expertise in the field of market surveillance as well as its contribution to the continuous improvement of safety and quality of products which are traded between both nations.

The event was framed by several expert presentations which respectively focused on legal framework of market surveillance in EU, organization and function of market surveillance in Germany, market surveillance during commerce in China, and inter-land coordination of market surveillance of chemical substances.

Over 50 participants attended the symposium. On the German side, in addition to BMWi, these included representatives of the Embassy of the Federal Republic of Germany in Beijing and of the market surveillance authorities of the state of Bavaria and of the state of Baden-Württemberg. On the Chinese side, the Standing Committee of the National People’s Congress, the State Council, the General Administration of Quality Supervision, Inspection and Quarantine, the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology, the Ministry of Environmental Protection, the State Administration for Industry and Commerce, and representatives from industry associations were present.

As part of the implementation of the Joint Declaration regarding the cooperation in the regulatory framework for market surveillance, which has been signed by BMWi and MOFCOM in October 2014, the symposium provided a platform for experts to communicate directly with each other and engage in an open exchange about the respective systems.