ASEAN
The Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) is a very important player in the global trade, and consists of: Brunei, Darussalam, Cambodia, Indonesia, Malaysia, Myanmar, Lao PDR, Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and Viet Nam.
The region has a very strong economic alliance with the ASEAN Secretariat in Jakarta, Indonesia that has been working to meet its key goals of economic integration in the region.
The Agreement on the ASEAN Harmonized Cosmetic Regulatory Scheme is in place to enable goods produced or marketed in one country to enter other participating countries by removing the barriers linked to standards, technical regulations and conformity assessment.
The Agreement covers both the ASEAN Mutual Recognition Arrangements of Product Registration Approvals for Cosmetics and the ASEAN Cosmetic Directive (the ACD), with all member states committed to implementing the ACD by 2008.
The ACD aims to limit restrictions on the trade of cosmetic products by streamlining technical controls, promoting mutual recognition in terms of product notification and labeling, and establishing coordinated market surveillance systems to ensure the safety, quality and claimed benefits of products that are sold.