“ICT Standardization Day” at the Council of the EU: CEN and CENELEC standards support ICT ambitions in Europe and beyond

The three European Standardization Organizations were invited to the Council of the European Union to explain their mission and work process to the national representatives to the telecommunications working party meeting. CEN and CENELEC’s Director General, Elena Santiago Cid, took this opportunity to present the underlying principles of consensus, openness, transparency, national delegation and technical coherence that guide the European standards development process. She also highlighted the work that CEN and CENELEC have and are continuing to undertake to provide high quality standards to support key ICT legislation.

CEN and CENELEC are currently carrying out several initiatives to develop standards to support key ICT topics such as Artificial Intelligence, Cybersecurity, Semi-conductors, Quantum and the Digital Product Passport. Standardization work in these sectors will be essential to transform Europe and meet the ambitions of the net-zero and digital future.

As a part of this work, CEN and CENELEC are developing harmonized standards that will assist companies in complying with the requirements of key EU ICT legislation. One notable example is the standards being developed by CEN and CENELEC JTC 21 to support the Artificial Intelligence Act, that was published on 12 July in the Official Journal of the European Union.

Other topics raised included the importance of strong coordination between Member States and the European Commission regarding European Standardization alongside the need to increase the number of European digital standardization experts. As the Hungarian Presidency plans to adopt Council Conclusions on education, CEN and CENELC asked that Member States consider including standardization, in particular in digital, as an important area to increase educational opportunities.

CEN and CENELEC very much appreciated the fruitful discussions on European Standardization and the insights provided from the Member States perspective. We welcome future opportunities to continue this dialogue considering the importance of standardization to both European Competitiveness and the Digital Transition.