Albania joins the IEC

Geneva, Switzerland, May 13 – On 24 April 2009, the IEC Council approved the application of Albania as its 76th member, bringing the total number of countries in the IEC Family to 159 – 76 Members and 83 Affiliates from developing countries – comprising more than 95 % of the world’s population.
Albania, joining the IEC as an Associate Member, had previously gained preliminary experience in electrotechnical standardization through its participation in the IEC Affiliate Country Programme.
Associate Members have limited participation rights which enable them to take part as observers in all technical meetings, in the Council and SMB (Standardization Management Board) meetings held during the annual General Meeting. They can access and comment on all IEC technical documents. In addition, Associate Members may request permission from the IEC General Secretary to become Participating members (P-members) on a maximum of four technical committees and/or subcommittees with the right to vote on technical work emanating from these committees.
In recent years Albania has embarked on a great number of democratic and economic developments and is currently pursuing a path of increased Euro-Atlantic integration. It is a member of a number of international organizations, as well as multiple regional organizations and initiatives. It applied for official European Union membership at the end of April this year.
Figures for 2007 show the Republic of Albania producing 2,892 billion kWh of electricity, while the consumption for 2007 was somewhat greater at 3,607 billion kWh. New investment has been made in the fixed telephone line infrastructure, with the density of main lines in 2005 being evaluated at 353 600; cellular telephone use is more widespread at 2,3 million (2007).
The President of the Albanian National Committee of the IEC is Arben Nati and the Secretary is Blerina Top誵, both from the Albanian General Directorate of Standardization.
The International Electrotechnical Commission (IEC) is the leading global organization that prepares and publishes international standards for all electrical, electronic and related technologies. These serve as a basis for national standardization and as references when drafting international tenders and contracts.
Through its members, the IEC promotes international cooperation on all questions of electrotechnical standardization and related matters, such as the assessment of conformity to standards, in the fields of electricity, electronics and related technologies.
The IEC charter embraces all electrotechnologies including electronics, magnetics and electromagnetics, electroacoustics, multimedia, telecommunication, and energy production and distribution, as well as associated general disciplines such as terminology and symbols, electromagnetic compatibility, measurement and performance, dependability, design and development, safety and the environment.