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                                                                    Exhibit 31.1



                                 CERTIFICATIONS

I, Steven Katz, certify that:

1. I have reviewed this annual report on Form 10-K of Ortec International, Inc.;

2. Based on my knowledge, this annual report does not contain any untrue
statement of a material fact or omit to state a material fact necessary to make
the statements made, in light of the circumstances under which such statements
were made, not misleading with respect to the period covered by this annual
report;

3. Based on my knowledge, the financial statements, and other financial
information included in this annual report, fairly present in all material
respects the financial condition, results of operations and cash flows of the
registrant as of, and for, the periods presented in this annual report;

4. The registrant's other certifying officer and I are responsible for
establishing and maintaining disclosure controls and procedures (as defined in
Exchange Act Rules 13a-14 and 15d-14) for the registrant and we have:

a)   designed such disclosure controls and procedures to ensure that material
     information relating to the registrant, including its consolidated
     subsidiaries, is made known to us by others within those entities,
     particularly during the period in which this annual report is being
     prepared;

b)   evaluated the effectiveness of the registrant's disclosure controls and
     procedures as of a date within 90 days prior to the filing date of this
     annual report (the "Evaluation Date"); and

c)   presented in this annual report our conclusions about the effectiveness of
     the disclosure controls and procedures based on our evaluation as of the
     Evaluation Date;

5. The registrant's other certifying officer and I have disclosed, based on our
most recent evaluation, to the registrant's auditors and the audit committee of
the registrant's board of directors (or persons performing the equivalent
functions):

a)   all significant deficiencies in the design or operation of internal
     controls which could adversely affect the registrant's ability to record,
     process, summarize and report financial data and have identified for the
     registrant's auditors any material weaknesses in internal controls; and

b)   any fraud, whether or not material, that involves management or other
     employees who have a significant role in the registrant's internal
     controls; and




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6. The registrant's other certifying officer and I have indicated in this annual
report whether there were significant changes in internal controls or in other
factors that could significantly affect
internal controls subsequent to the date of our most recent evaluation,
including any corrective actions with regard to significant deficiencies and
material weaknesses.

Date:  April 14, 2003


                                                     /s/ Steven Katz
                                                     ---------------------------
                                                     STEVEN KATZ
                                                     Chairman and Principal
                                                     Executive Officer