Brussels, 1 July 2010
The Seconded European Standardization Expert in India (SESEI) officially assumed his role to support the European Standards Organisations (ESOs) and promote European Standards in India as well as to provide feedback on Indian standardization.
Recognizing the importance of India as a major player in the global economy, the three European Standards Organisations (ESOs), CEN (the European Committee for Standardization), CENELEC (the European Committee for Electrotechnical Standardization) and ETSI (the European Telecommunications Standards Institute), together with the European Commission and the European Free Trade Agreement (EFTA), have created the post for the Seconded European Standardization Expert in India, thus supporting the EU-India economic relationship. The task of the SESEI is to represent the ESOs in India, promote the model of industry-driven standardization, develop contacts with stakeholders, increase visibility of European standardization, as well as to improve European stakeholders' knowledge and understanding of Indian standardization.
The SESEI project is under the management of CEN and co-financed by the ESOs, the European Commission and EFTA. A public call for tender was launched in January for the recruitment of the expert. The selection process has now been completed with the appointment of Mr Kiritkumar Lathia. He will be based at the European Business and Technology Centre in New Delhi.
During the first SESEI Committee Meeting, held on 29 June 2010 at the premises of CEN and CENELEC, Mr Lathia said that he was looking forward to contributing to the success of the EU-India economic relationship by utilising his management and strategic standards knowledge at European and world-wide level in representing the three European Standards Organisations in India.
During the first SESEI Committee Meeting, Mr Lathia signed the SESEI contract:
 Signing of the SESEI contract: Mr Kirit Lathia and Mrs Elena Santiago (Director General CEN-CENELEC) |
The SESEI contract was signed in the presence of (l-r): |
Mr Lathia has broad experience in the field of standardization, having been a member of the ETSI Board and Finance Committee from 1997 to 2008, where he participated in the establishment of the global 3rd Generation Partnership Project (3GPP) whose task is to develop specifications for advanced mobile communications systems worldwide.
Mr Lathia is an Overseas Citizen of India and speaks several languages, including English, Italian, Gujarat and Hindi.
The implementation of the SESEI role follows the successful model of the Seconded European Standardization Expert in China (SESEC), who has been performing his role since 2006.
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Notes for Editors
ABOUT CEN
The European Committee for Standardization (CEN) is a business catalyst in Europe, removing trade barriers for European stakeholders such as industry, public administration, service providers, consumers and other stakeholders. Its mission is to foster the European economy in global trading, the welfare of European citizens, and the environment. Through its services CEN provides a platform for the development of European Standards and other specifications.
CEN's 31 National Members work together to develop voluntary European Standards (ENs) in various sectors to build a European Internal Market for goods and services and to position Europe in the global economy. By supporting research, and helping disseminate innovation, standards are a powerful tool for economic growth. More than 60.000 technical experts as well as business federations, consumer and other societal interest organizations are involved in the CEN network that reaches over 480 million people.
For further information, please visit: http://www.cen.eu/
ABOUT CENELEC
The European Committee for Electrotechnical Standardization is officially responsible for standardization in the electrotechnical field. In an ever more global economy, CENELEC fosters innovation and competitiveness, making technology available not only to major businesses but also to SMEs through the production of voluntary standards. CENELEC creates market access at the European level but also at the international level through its cooperation agreement with the International Electrotechnical Commission (IEC).
Through the work of its 31 Members together with its experts, the industry federations and consumers, Electrotechnical European Standards are created in order to help shape the European Internal Market, to encourage technological development, to ensure interoperability and to guarantee the safety and health of consumers and provide environmental protection.
Detailed information available at http://www.cenelec.eu/
About ETSI
ETSI produces globally-applicable standards for Information and Communications Technologies (ICT), including fixed, mobile, radio, converged, aeronautical, broadcast and internet technologies and is officially recognized by the European Union as a European Standards Organization. ETSI is an independent, not-for-profit association whose 740 member companies and organizations, drawn from 62 countries across 5 continents worldwide, determine the ETSI work programme and participate directly in its work.
ETSI's complementary standards-enabling service (Interopolis and Forapolis) offer "Idea to Product" solutions. Interopolis provides testing methodology expertise, including interoperability test events. Forapolis provides a full range of support and management services to associations and fora.
For further information, please visit www.etsi.org
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