The ATA Chronicle - September/October 2022 - 27

regulating the professional
practice of sworn translators
in Argentina. As a result,
the CTPCBA was created
as a non-state public legal
entity to govern the control
and administration of a
professional registry of
sworn translators in various
languages. Searches within
the registry can be filtered
by language combination
and by cities and regions
of Argentina.
The CTPCBA now has
around 9,000 registered
translators. According to Act
20,305, every document in a
foreign language submitted
before official, judicial, or
administrative bodies or
agencies shall be attached to
a certified sworn translation
in the national language,
or vice versa. Pursuant to
Section 10, Paragraph D of
Act 20,305: " the Association
of Sworn Translators of
the City of Buenos Aires
shall attach a certification
stating that the signature
and seal affixed to the
translated document match
the specimen signature and
seal of the sworn translator
whose name appears on
the attached translation. " 6
Since 2019, certified
sworn translators have
been allowed to use their
registered digital signatures.
Translators have to file
their signature with one of
the authorized registration
governmental authorities.
The corresponding
associations then
authenticate the translated
documents based on the
registered digital signature.7
According to data from
Nimzdi, an international
market research and
consulting firm, the most
dominant services provided
www.ata-chronicle.online
by Argentine linguists
are translation (28.6%),
desktop publishing (10.7%),
localization (10.7%),
interpreting (8.9%),
transcreation (5.4%),
training courses (5.4%),
and other related
services (5.4%).8
What Does
Standardization Mean?
Standardization has a very
long history dating back
to the early 19th century,
when the Industrial
Revolution gave the real
impetus for growth in
this area. Standardization
is a process intended to
establish provisions aimed
at common and repeated
uses to achieve an optimum
set of rules in a given
industry. The result of this
process is a document called
a standard that specifies
the provisions agreed upon
by (ideally) all interested
parties. Standards cover
a huge range of activities.
They can be about making
a product, managing
a process, delivering a
service, or supplying
materials. The purpose of
a standard is to establish
clear provisions that
facilitate communication
and commercial exchanges
carried out at a national
and international level.
Standards can be national,
regional, and international.
In general, standards are
established by consensus and
approved by a recognized
body. They are agreed
upon by experts who
know the needs within the
subject matter and of the
organizations that these
experts represent. Standards
provide rules, guidelines, or
characteristics for activities
Argentina is a unique and welldeveloped
market in the language
industry, not only because of the
large number of professional
translators in the country with
a high level of education and
professionalism, but also because
of the current relevance of Spanish
as a target language.
or their results to achieve the
maximum degree of quality
in a given context.
In connection with quality
standards, the importance of
a process-oriented approach
must be stated. A process
is an ordered sequence
of interrelated activities.
Process standardization
is generally defined as
improving operational
performance, reducing
expenses through decreased
process errors, facilitating
communication, and
profiting from expert
knowledge. Processes
are designed to satisfy
customer requirements more
effectively and efficiently by
assigning responsibilities
within specific activities.
Historical Development
of Standardization
in Argentina
Each country has its own
standardization body.
Argentina is a trailblazer in
standards in South America.
Back in the early 20th
century, some visionary
organizations in Argentina
saw the importance of
founding a new technical,
independent, and
representative organization
that could create standards
that regulate and collaborate
within the various activities
of society. As a result,
the Instituto Argentino
de Normalización y
Certificación (IRAM)9
, a
private nonprofit entity, was
founded in 1935. It became
a legal entity in 1937 and
was shortly afterwards
granted recognition by
the government as the
central organization for
the technical and scientific
study of standards, with the
object of developing and
maintaining uniformity of
systems and process criteria
throughout standards. The
relationship between the
Argentine government
and IRAM is defined
in Presidential Decree
1474/94, passed in August
1994, which established
the National System for
Standards, Quality, and
Certification and defines
its scope, operation, and
implementation. Only two
private sector organizations
carry out standardization
and accreditation in
Argentina, working under
the National System for
Standards, Quality, and
American Translators Association 27
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The ATA Chronicle - September/October 2022

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