2011 Bahrain Country Commercial Guide - US - Export.gov

Legislative Decree No. 13 of 1992, for issuing Bahrain‘s standards, either by adopting as
national standards the international or Gulf standards issued by the Gulf Cooperation
Council (GCC) Standards and Metrology Organization, or by preparing standards to
meet national requirements.
The BSMD is led by a National Committee that acts as the Board of Directors. This
board, made up of representatives from relevant ministries and the Chamber of
Commerce as well as individual experts, is the highest authority on standards and
metrology. The BSMD consists of two sections: the Standards & Information section
and Quality Assurance & Metrology section.
Standardization in Bahrain can be traced back to the late 1960s when traffic was shifted
from the left to the right side of the road, and liquid measures were converted from the
imperial gallon to the liter. The pound was used for mass measurements, and the foot,
yard, and mile for length and area measurements. The changeover to the metric system
set the pace for standardization in Bahrain.
Standards Organizations Return to top
The Bahraini body concerned with establishment and overview of standards is the
Bahrain Standards and Metrology Directorate (BSMD), of the Ministry of Industry and
Commerce, which can be reached at:
Ministry of Industry & Commerce
Bahrain Standards & Metrology Directorate
Diplomatic Area
P.O. Box 5479
Manama, Kingdom of Bahrain
Phone: (+ 973) 1757 4871
Fax: (+973) 1753 0730
E-mail: bsmd@moic.gov.bh
Website:
http://www.moic.gov.bh/MoIC/En/Commerce/StandardizationConsumerProtection/Stand
ardsMetrologyDirectorate/
The GSO may be reached at the following address:
GCC Gulf Standardization Organization
P.O. Box 85245
Riyadh 11961
Phone: (+ 966) 1 - 2746655
E-mail: gso@gso.org.sa
Notify U.S. Service
Member countries of the World Trade Organization (WTO) are required under the
Agreement on Technical Barriers to Trade (TBT Agreement) to report to the WTO all
proposed technical regulations that could affect trade with other Member countries. The
U.S. National Center for Standards and Certification Information operates ―Notify U.S.‖,
a free, web-based e-mail subscription service that offers an opportunity to review and
56