Organization of the National Administration and Legal Requirements

Legislation can generally be grouped into two main categories: statutes enacted by the national legislating body (laws), and all subordinated enactments (regulations). Laws should ideally be kept as basic as possible, to facilitate approval by national legislative bodies and leave flexibility in implementation. Regulations give an operational effect to the law; they are better suited for defining technical details and requirements likely to be changed, as laws can be difficult to amend over time.

Some of the essential components for a law governing the placement of chemicals on the market include:

• An organizational structure that establishes the powers of the national authority and outlines the roles and responsibilities of key stakeholders;
• The creation of a knowledge base to collect, interpret, and disseminate information used to inform decisions on chemicals;
• The establishment of preventive and corrective measures to ensure proper importation, production and use of chemicals;
• A compliance scheme for monitoring and enforcement; and,
• Provisions for funding over the long term.