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Regulatory inspections and enforcement are seen by many as a key instrument to ensure the effectiveness of regulations – it is broadly assumed to be essential to have supervision and “deterrence” to promote compliance with rules, and thus achievement of regulatory outcomes. However, this presupposes that rules are indeed adequate for reaching outcomes, and that control is what drives compliance with rules. A different approach suggests that compliance is more complex and driven by a combination of factors (ethics, social conformity, procedural justice and legitimacy etc), that rules are imperfect, and that risk-focused, risk-proportionate “regulatory delivery” will achieve better results, more “effectiveness”. Considering a case study of occupational safety inspections and outcomes in Britain, France and Germany, we observe that higher numbers of inspections are not correlated with less fatal incidents, and that, on the contrary, the best outcomes are achieved in the country having the least inspection visits, the most risk-focused system, and the broadest approach to “regulatory delivery”, combining engagement with regulated industries, guidance, responsive and risk-proportionate enforcement, and risk-based, targeted inspections.

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The national metrology, standards and conformity assessment system in Ukraine is still largely based on the state-controlled Soviet system and differ significantly in form and function from the national standards and conformity assessment systems (or the national quality infrastructure) found in countries of the European Union and of the OECD. While in the latter group of countries the vast majority of national standards are of a voluntary nature and the national quality infrastructure operates as a highly-decentralized network of public and private institutions, the Ukrainian model emphasizes technical regulations (or mandatory standards) and is dominated by highly-centralized government institutions. Recent accession of Ukraine into WTO and commitment for integration into the European Union (EU) motivated an assessment of its national quality infrastructure (metrology, standards and conformity assessment). The importance of metrology and metrology policy development is discussed to support the regulatory environment. The paper discusses main findings of the assessment developed in cooperation between the World Bank and the IFC Ukraine Business Enabling Environment Project.