An ASEAN Mutual
Recognition Arrangement for
Tourism Services
Professor Chris Cooper
Bangkok
December 2006
Presentation
 Background
 Mutual
Recognition
Arrangements
 Policy background
 An MRA for Tourism Services
 Key Concepts of the MRA
 What we need to do
ASEAN Background
Rapid economic growth driving
tourism demand
 Demand for more skilled manpower
 Imperative for tourism
competitiveness
 MRAs facilitate and accelerate
product and labour mobility

There are many barriers which affect the free
and easy flow of human resources and
services
There are so many different requirements to
observe when assessing conformity in
countries all over the world
Accreditation and conformance assessment
bodies have responded by seeking to develop
mutual recognition arrangements
Their aim is to reduce the difficulties imposed
by the various requirements
The Basics of MRAs
MRAs
Mutual Recognition Arrangements are
arrangements between two or more
parties to mutually recognise or accept
some or all aspects of one another’s
conformity assessment results (in our
case tourism certificates and
qualifications).
MRAs

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The purpose of an MRA is to facilitate trade
Each country has its own regulations and
administrative procedures
AN MRA is a mechanism by which regulations,
standards and procedures can be conformed
Initially bi-lateral, then mature to multi-lateral (e.g.
EU, ASEAN)
In order to facilitate international trade, an MRA
sets out an agreement by which countries can
mutually recognise each other’s conformity
assessments.
Each MRA tends to be sector specific.
MRAs
We should understand that MRAs:
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Do not guarantee a visa or a job
Involve trust and openness
Require uniform terminology
Are based upon credible specifications and
conformance
Provide useful steps towards building
confidence for cooperation in the future
MRAs
We should also understand that MRAs:

Have participants who abide to a commitment to
recognize each others’ conformity assessment
procedures
 Should be demand driven, not labor supply
driven
 Should facilitate movement to demand- driven
CBT training and certification
 Should facilitate equity of access to labor
markets
Obligations of MRA Partners
MRA partners are obliged to accept
one another’s conformity
assessment as meeting its own
regulatory requirement
 Products for export are automatically
accepted by the importing country
without further testing

Types of MRAs
1.
2.
Technical - between technical
bodies
Government to government
(ASEAN MRAs)
Carried out in product sectors where
the government is the regulator
Benefits of MRAs
Reduced compliance costs
 Market access
 Competition and innovation
 Free flow of trade
 Consumers
 Good practice and cooperation
 Discipline in standards

Regulatory Body
Conformity Assessment
Body
E.g.: Testing
Certification or
Inspection Body
Trainers
MRA
Country A
Certificate
-------
Regulatory Body
Conformity Assessment
Body
Egg: Testing
Certification or
Inspection Body
The Policy Background
Globally
 World
Trade Organization - Technical
Barriers to Trade Agreement (mid
1990s)
 ‘Members
are encouraged at the request of
other members to be willing to enter into
negotiations for the mutual recognition of
each others conformity assessment’
 World
Trade Organization GATS
(article VII)
As a result, MRAs became
important in conformity
assessment
Policy for Economic Integration

From AFTA to AEC
 Deeper and broader economic integration
 12 priority products - including tourism
 ASEAN framework agreement on MRAs
signed 1998
Policy for Services and Tourism

ASEAN Framework Agreement on Services
(AFAS)
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‘States may recognize the education… or certificates
granted by another State’
ASEAN Framework Agreement for the Integration
of Priority Sectors (Nov. 2004)
Roadmap for Integration of the Tourism Sector
(Nov. 2004)
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The roadmap includes the desire across all states to
benefit from freer movement of qualified personnel
across the ASEAN region
This should ideally be achieved by 2008
MRAs are an Instrument of
ASEAN Policy

ASEAN Framework Agreement for the Integration
of Priority Sectors (Nov. 2004)
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Develop an ASEAN Agreement to facilitate the
movement of experts, professionals, skilled labour and
talents by December 2005;
Accelerate completion of MRAs to facilitate the free
movement of experts, professionals, skilled labour and
talents in ASEAN by December 2008; and
States shall cooperate to develop and upgrade skills
and capacity building through joint training and
workshops.
The ASEAN Framework
Agreement on MRAs
Signed December 1998
 Framework document to guide the
design and terminology of MRAs for
ASEAN
 Electronics, telecommunications and
cosmetics
 The MRA for Tourism Services must
align with this framework document

An MRA for Tourism Services
An MRA for Tourism Services
An MRA will facilitate agreement on
certified competencies (including
languages) in specific job titles and
access to work visas.
i.e.: an ASEAN-wide tourism labour
market with states exporting and
importing labour.
An MRA for Tourism Services
The MRA will:

Require ongoing servicing and
development
 Build confidence and cooperation
 Encourage capacity building
 Deal with certification of people not
products
An MRA for Tourism Services
It will operate by

The exporting country checking for
conformity of their qualification against
the rules of the importing country
 Exporting states therefore bear the cost of
conformance – and of preparation and
training
Key Concepts and Terms
The Pivotal Notion of
Equivalence

A key concept driving MRAs is
equivalence assessment – are the
qualifications of country A equivalent to
those of country B - i.e of equal value

MRAs require participants to mutually
accept each others’ conformity
procedures as being equivalent
Conformance

In considering an MRA we must
distinguish between:
 Rules
which may be technical
regulations, standards or guidelines
against which something is judged; and
 Conformity assessment - the process
by which things are evaluated for
compliance with the rules
Conformity Assessment

Conformity Assessment means systematic
examination to determine the extent to
which a product, process or service fulfils
specified requirements

In other words, how tourism certification
and qualifications fulfil requirements of
each ASEAN country
The Organization Needed Under
the Framework Agreement
In other words what we need to do
Joint Sectoral Committee

Each Sectoral MRA establishes a Joint
Sectoral Committee responsible for the
effective functioning of that Sectoral
MRA.
 The Joint Sectoral Committee comprises
one official representative designated by
each Country to the Sectoral MRA.
 ASEAN Tourism Professional Monitoring
Committee
Tourism Professional Certification
Board

A TPCB is responsible for the assessment
and certification of tourism professionals
 It will facilitate good practice and
exchange of knowledge.
Authority

Member State signatories to a Sectoral
MRAs shall ensure that the TPCB has the
power and competence in their respective
territories to carry out decisions required
of them under the Framework
Agreement.
National Tourism Professional
Association (TRG)

The NTPA means an entity that exercises
a legal right to control the import, use or
sale of products within a Member State's
jurisdiction (nominated by government).
 For the tourism MRA they are
responsible for the registration of tourism
professionals through ALET
ASEAN Labour Exchange for
Tourism
A web-based facility to disseminate
details about job vacancies and
foreign tourism professionals
seeking employment
An MRA for Tourism Services
ASEAN Tourism Professional
Monitoring Committee
 Tourism Professional Certification
Board
 National Tourism Professional
Association (TRG)
 ASEAN Labour Exchange for
Tourism

Capacity Building
Provisions of the Framework
Agreement include capacity building
to ensure that competency and
infrastructure are developed to
deliver the products and services
demanded by the MRA
Phasing

All Sectoral MRAs are intended to be
multilateral agreements in which all
Member States are encouraged to
participate.
 However, two or more Member States
may proceed first if other Member States
are not ready to participate in the
Sectoral MRAs.
A Draft Structure for an MRA for
Tourism Services
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Preamble
Objectives
Scope and coverage
Provisions for
recognition and
qualification of foreign
tourism professionals
National bodies

ASEAN Professional
Monitoring Committee
 Mutual recognition
obligations
 Timing
 Contacts
 Other
The End!