This subcomponent supports international recognition of the National Quality Infrastructure (NQI).  The Project will assist the Kosovo Metrology Agency (KMA) and Kosovo Accreditation Directorate (KAD) to become qualified to sign the Mutually Recognized Agreements with International Committee on Weights and Measures and International Laboratory Accreditation Cooperation/Accreditation Forum, and support coordination for the sustainability of an NQI system. These efforts will help existing domestic laboratories (and the entire NQI of Kosovo) to be recognized by high-value markets, such as the EU, and thus reduce firms’ costs of obtaining internationally recognized testing reports and certificates. 

This subcomponent will finance equipment, capacity building, and IT systems (i) to support Kosovo Metrology Agency to upgrade selected metrology laboratories, train their staff to use the new equipment, and build their capacity to improve traceability and interlaboratory comparisons—key bottlenecks that Kosovo Metrology Agency must overcome to sign Mutually Recognized Agreements with international organizations; (ii) to support Kosovo Accreditation Directorate with IT systems for data interoperability and exchange, which will ensure relevant agencies can access information about standards and laboratories’ testing results, and ensure that Kosovo Accreditation Directorate’s accreditation of laboratories is in line with international best practice; and (iii) to improve coordination for the sustainability of an NQI system by supporting the establishment of a National Quality Infrastructure Committee (NQIC) with private sector participation1 and improving public awareness of international standards and harmonization requirements.