This Agreement is made on the fifth day of May, 1998 between Ch-
inese National Laboratory accreditation (CNLA), having its Secr-
etariat Office at 30 Ta-Hsueh Road, Hsinchu, Taiwan, R.O.C.
And
South African National accreditation System (SANAS), having its
administrative office at Building 10f, CSIR Campus, Pretoria,
South Africa.

1.CNLA and SANAS wish to enter into this Mutual Recognition Agr-
eement (MRA) to recognize each other's laboratory accreditati-
on systems so as to facilitate the trading of products that
require testing in respect of characteristics and/or performa-
nce, thus minimizing non-tariff barriers to trade between Tai-
wan, R.O.C. and South Africa.

2.The MRA is considered to be in harmony with the aims of the
World trade Organisation designed to minimise technical barri-
ers to trade.

3.CNLA and SANAS operate accreditation system in their respecti-
ve economies to grant formal recognition to testing and calib-
ration laboratories which are found competent to carry out sp-
ecific tests or types of tests or calibrations.

4.The laboratory accreditation system administered by each of
the participants is voluntary in the sense that participation
in it by the laboratories being accredited is not required by
law. CNLA and SANAS base their decisions to accredit laborato-
ries on the criteria laid down in ISO/IEC Guide 25 and their
interpretation by the respective systems. Officials responsib-
le for the administration of each system have participated in
assessment and surveillance visits to laboratories accredited
under the other system and affirm that each other's operation-
al procedures are in accordance with the criteria laid down in
ISO/IEC Guide 58.

5.This Agreement gives effect to the decisions by both particip-
ants to grant recognition to each other's laboratory accredit-
ation systems. Each participant will, for all testing and cal-
ibration:

a.recognise the accreditation of a testing or calibration labor-
atory under CNLA or SANAS as equivalent to an accreditation by
the other.

b.recognise endorsed test or calibration reports* issued by a
laboratory accredited under CNLA or SANAS on the same basis as
it recognises endorsed test or calibration reports for its own
accredited laboratories;

* An "endorsed test or calibration report" is a test/calibration
report or test/calibration certificate issued by a laboratory
accredited by CNLA or SANAS displaying the CNLA logo and endo-
rsement wording or the SANAS logo and endorsement wording on
the test/calibration report or test/calibration certificate
only for those tests or calibrations covered by their "Scope
of Accreditation".

c.recommend to other persons and organisations in their respect-
ive economies and elsewhere that such persons and organisatio-
ns should recognise the accreditations granted to laboratories
by the signatories to this MRA as being equivalent;

d.recommend to other persons and organisations in their respect-
ive economies and elsewhere that such persons and organizatio-
ns should accept endorsed test or calibration reports issued
under the laboratory accreditation system administered by the
signatories to this MRA as being equivalent;

e.maintain record of the terms of accreditation of laboratories
accredited by each of the participants to this MRA and make
this information generally available;

f.publish criteria to accredit laboratories in its own economy,
maintain on file criteria of the other's system, and collabor-
ate in the development and adoption of revised criteria for
accreditation of laboratories to increase harmony between the
two accreditation systems;

g.carry out laboratory surveillance and reassess its own labora-
tories on a regularly scheduled basis and, where practical,
co-operate in operating proficiency testing programs;

h.co-operate in promoting the development and adoption of labor-
atory accreditation principles internationally and in the dev-
elopment of international standards relating to laboratory ac-
creditation.

6.The participants to this MRA, whilst recognising that there
may be minor differences between the two participants in inte-
rpretation of the ISO/IEC Guide 25 for evaluating laboratories
, will regard the resulting accreditations granted to laborat-
ories as equivalent. Each participant will eliminate or minim-
ise these differences. Each participant to this MRA will inve-
stigate in its own economy complaints about laboratories the
other has accredited and the parties will work together to se-
ek the satisfactory resolution of such complaints.

7.CNLA and SANAS will appoint a suitable person to administer
the operation of the MRA and for the initial period of the MRA
. The appointed persons are as follows:

a.CNLA:
Excecutive Director
Secretariat of Chinese National Laboratory Accreditation (CNLA
)
30 Ta-Hsueh Road
Hsinchu
Taiwan 300
R.O.C.
Telephone:＋886 3 5710233
Facsimile :＋886 3 5726308

b.SANAS:
Chief Executive Officer
So uth African National accreditation System (SANAS)
P O Box 914-2142
WINGATE PARK 0153
South African

Telephone: + 27 12 349-1267
Facsimile: + 27 12 349-1449

8.This MRA is for an initial period of four years from the date
of execution by both participants, after which it may be exte-
nded by agreement of both participants. This MRA may be termi-
nated by either participant giving the other participant not
less than three months' notice in writing before the terminat-
ion.

9.This Agreement will apply to all successors and/or assigns of
both participants.

10.Either will not use the other participant's trademarks or tr-
ade names other than for the purposes of this Agreement, wit-
hout the latter's written consent.

11.In the course of this Agreement, either CNLA or SANAS may di-
sclose confidential information to the other participant ("
receiving participant"). The receiving participant will not
disclose any such confidential information without the writt-
en consent of the other participant.

Approved and Accepted for
CHINESE NATIONAL LABORATORY ACCREDITATION, Taiwan, R.O.C. by Ch-
en, Tso-Chen, Chairman of Chinese National Laboratory Accredita-
tion Council in the presence of:
(signature)
Date:7/ 5/ 99

Approved and Accepted for
SOUTH AFRICAN NATIONAL ACCREDITATION SYSTEM by Mike Peet, Chief
Executive Officer in the presence of:
(signature)
Date:7/ 5/ 99