G/SPS/GEN/121/Add.19  
 
17 December 2019  
(19-8766) Page: 1/2 
Committee on Sanitary and Phytosanitary Measures    
 
 
APPLICANTS FOR OBSER VER STATUS  
NOTE BY THE SECRETAR IAT1 
Addendum  
An application for observer status in the SPS Committee was received on  2 December 2019 from 
the Arab Organization for Agricultural Development (AOAD ). Information provided by AOAD  is 
summarized below.  
 
1  MEMBERSHIP  
1.1.  Membership includes 22 Arab members as listed below:  
1. Algeria**  
2. Bahrain (Kingdom of)*  
3. Comoros**  
4. Djibouti*  
5. Egypt*  
6. Iraq**  
7. Jordan*  
8. Kuwait (the State of)*  9. Lebanon**  
10. Libya**  
11. Mauritania*  
12. Morocco* * 
13. Palestine***  
14. Oman*  
15. Qatar*  
16. Saudi Arabia (Kingdom of)*  17. Somalia**  
18. Sudan**  
19. Syrian Arab Republic**  
20. Tunisia*  
21. United Arab Emirates*  
22. Yemen*  
* WTO Member . 
** WTO Observer . 
*** Not a WTO Member or Observer.  
2  MANDATE, SCOPE AND A REA OF WORK  
2.1.  AOAD's  mandate is centered on a griculture; Khartoum was selected to host the organization's 
headquarters. Precisely, the Arab countries took this step of establishing AOAD  driven by the need 
for coordination of their agricultural policies, natural and human reso urces as well as to foster 
economic development, aiming at achieving the ultimate goal of fully integrated Arab economies.  
2.2.  The organization's goals, as defined at its establishment, are aligned along two dimensions, 
nationally as well as regionally. At the  national level, AOAD is tasked to assist member countries in 
developing and enhancing their respective agricultural sectors. At the regional level, AOAD is to 
facilitate coordination within the agricultural sector amongst its member States, with the aim o f 
achieving a fully integrated Arab economyand food self ‐sufficiency for the region.  
2.3.  The overall objective of AOAD is to identify and develop linkages among Arab countries in all 
agricultural and agriculture ‐related activities, including the following:  
− Developing the natural and human resources available in the agricultural sector, and 
enhancing their output based on technical know ‐how; 
− Increasing agricultural productivity, both in the animal and plant sector, and attaining full 
agricultural integration amo ng Arab countries ; 
                                                
1 This document has been prepared under the Secretariat's own responsibility and is without prejudice 
to the position of Members or to their rights and obligations under the WTO.  G/SPS/GEN/121/Add.19  
 
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  − Facilitating exchange of agricultural products among Arab countries ; 
− Increasing agricultural production in order to attain food self ‐sufficiency ; 
− Supporting agricultural projects and processing industries;  
− Bettering the living conditions  of workers in the agricultural sector.  
2.4.  Convinced that the joint Arab cooperation in agriculture should have a long ‐term strategic 
framework, the Arab leaders issued in 2005 the Algiers Summit Resolution. The Summit instructed 
the AOAD 's General Assembly to prepare the Strategy for Sustainable Arab Agricultural Development 
for the Upcoming Two Decades (2005 –2025), and t his Strategy is currently under reconsideration 
to further underline AOAD 's role in regard to the promotion and implementation of SPS measures.  
2.5.  Overall the strategy covers the following components that are directly relevant to and linked 
tothe SPS agenda:  
− Provision of safe food;  
− Increasing the competiveness of the agricultural Arab products in international markets.  
3  CONTRIBUTION TO THE WORK OF THE SPS COMM ITTEE  
3.1.  AOAD fully acknowledges the vital role of agriculture in facilitating Arab trade and the potentia ls 
of enhanced domestic, intra ‐regional and international Arab trade in food. In this regard the 
organization has always been fully aware of the trade dimension of its agricultural ‐focused mandate.  
3.2.  Undoubtedly, this trade ‐related aspect of AOAD 's regional agenda has been reinforced by the 
accelerated developments in global trade, especially also in regard to the establishment of the World 
Trade Organization (WTO). The new principles of the  Multilateral Trading System (MTS) were 
consequently in 1997 also add ressed in the declaration of the Pan ‐Arab Free Trade Area (PAFTA) 
under the League of Arab States (LAS).  
3.3.  Subsequently to the conclusion of PAFTA it was in 2005 when Arab countries agreed to  zero 
tariffs among themselves, and more focus was put on tackling non‐tariff barriers (NTBs) to trade. 
Hence the Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC) of LAS recently took the decision to establish a 
SPS and TBT Committee and to include legal SPS and TBT provisions in the PAFTA.  
3.4.  Considering AOAD 's mandate and the role it is playing by acting as technical implementation 
arm for any SPS ‐related work within LAS, AOAD has become an active member of the SPS committee 
at regional level and it  is hence now striving to further enhance its engagement and to assure that 
the Arab reg ion is fully integrated and represented at international level by becoming an observer 
in the SPS Committee.  
3.5.  Overall, AOAD's interventions in the field of sanitary and phytosanitary measures focus on the 
following:  
− Conduct of relevant regional studies;  
− Organization of national and regional technical and policy workshops;  
− Conduct of trainings for relevant technicians and decision makers of the region;  
− Facilitation of meetings and expert ‐working groups to foster coordination and collaboration 
in the SPS field  within the Arab region;  
− Development of guidance manuals and technical report and dissemination among all its 
members;  
− Awareness raising and dissemination of international best practices in the SPS fiel d. 
4  RECIPROCITY  
4.1.  All documents related to SPS activities  are available on the AOAD website. Furthermore, the 
AOAD offers to grant the WTO Secretariat observer status in the meetings of its governing General 
Assembly as well as broad access to AOAD documents and proceedings.  
 
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