WORLD TRADE
ORGANIZATIONG/SPS/GEN/206
18 October 2000
(00-4300)
Committee on Sanitary and Phytosanitary Measures
TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE TYPOLOGY
Note by the Secretariat
1. At the 21-22 June 2000 meeting of the SPS Committee, the Secretariat was requested to
prepare a paper outlining a possible typology of technical assistance needs to help Members to decidewhich types of technical assistance action were most appropriate.  For the preparation of this note, the
Secretariat drew on its own experience in the context of its technical assistance activities
1 and on
information provided by Members, especially durin g the process of review of the application and
implementation of the SPS Agreement.2  In addition, information provided by the Codex Alimentarius
Commission (Codex), the Office international des épizooties (OIE) and the International PlantProtection Convention (IPPC) was used.  Documentation distributed under the Committee on Trade
and Development has also been consulted.
2. The objectives of technical assistance and cooperation are to help beneficiary countries to
improve their understanding of the SPS Agreement, implement the obligations and fully benefit from
rights derived therefrom.  In this regard, technical assistance could be systematically classified by wayof four broad categories:  information;  training;  "soft" infrastructure development;  and "hard"
infrastructure development.
Information
Improving the general understanding of the SPS Agreement
3. The key objective of this type of technical assistance is to enhance the awareness and
understanding of Members' rights and obligations under the SPS Agreement.  The activities under this
category consist typically of an introduction to the WTO and the international trading system and a
comprehensive presentation of the SPS Agreement and related issues.  It normally takes the form of
conferences, seminars or workshops.  This is a typical area of competence of the WTO Secretariat in
cooperation with the secretariats of the Codex, OIE and IPPC.  The format and substance of this typeof technical assistance depends on whether it is mainly addressed to:  (a) the technical level, (b) the
policy level, or (c) the public, media and private sector.
Technical level
4. Officials directly responsible for the application of food safety, animal or plant health trade
requirements need to fully understand the Agreement.  Training takes the form of seminars andworkshops typically including (i) a general introduction to the WTO and the international trading
system;  (ii) a comprehensive introduction to the SPS Agreement, including the work of the SPS
Committee (emphasis put on the implementation of transparency provisions and practical examples
                                                     
1 Note by the Secretariat, "Experiences from technical assistance and cooperation in developing
countries", 24 June 1997 (G/SPS/GEN/17).
2 In particular the Note by the Secretariat "The SPS Agreement and developing countries",
5 November 1998 (G/SPS/W/93).G/SPS/GEN/206
Page 2
from the Committee discussions of trade problems);  (iii)  an introduction to the WTO dispute
settlement procedures;  and (iv)  an introduction to the work of the Codex, OIE and IPPC.  This "first
step" of technical assistance should allow participants to understand the importance of the SPS
Agreement for international trade, and help them  to initiate an assessment of their needs for an
appropriate implementation of its provisions.
Policy level
5. Officials responsible for the development of th e regulatory framework with regard to food
safety, animal health and/or plant protection and the development of SPS measures need to have a
thorough understanding of the Agreement, as well as of the work of the international standard-setting
organizations.  Activities usually take the form of seminars and workshops similar in content to those
organized for the technical level, but the accent is put on specific provisions of the Agreement dealingwith policy questions, including the concept of the appropriate level of health protection;  the use of
non-discriminatory, least trade-restrictive measures;  the implementation of the guidelines developed
by the SPS Committee (e.g. consistency);  and the analysis of SPS-related dispute settlement cases.  It
also includes detailed explanation of the work of  standard-setting bodies and consideration of ways
and means to encourage more active participation in the development of international standards,
guidelines and recommendations, including through the use of the procedure to monitor the process of
international harmonization.
Public, media and private sector
6. Food safety issues are increasingly subject to public and media scrutiny.  Moreover, with the
expansion of modern "farm to table" production/mark eting techniques, the private sector (agricultural
producers and agro-industries) plays an increasing rôle in the practical implementation of SPS
measures.  Technical assistance activities must take this evolution into consideration and provide for
the participation of representatives of consumers, producers and industry in seminars and workshops
(as well as other activities) of a more general nature.  Such participation enriches these activities by
bringing forward specific concerns and practical experiences.  It also facilitates the task ofgovernment officials in educating their traders and consumers with regard to the rights and obligations
under the Agreement and their implications.  Media representation should also be considered.
Training
Specific understanding of the SPS Agreement
7. This category of technical assistance flows naturally from the more general "information-
type" assistance described above.  The demand for more detailed explanations and discussions of
particular provisions of the Agreement continues to  grow along with a better general understanding of
the Agreement.  At the core of this type of technical assistance are issues such as the implementation
of transparency  provisions, application of risk analysis , determination of appropriate level of
protection , recognition of equivalence  and regionalization .  WTO dispute settlement  procedures and
analysis of SPS-related trade disputes are also addressed in detail.  The format of delivery is typically
national/regional technical seminars, workshops or training courses.  Normally these activities takeplace at the technical level .  This is an area of shared competence between Codex, OIE, IPPC and the
WTO Secretariat, but also one where initiatives by Members are helpful.  Examples of such initiatives
by Members include the sponsoring and conduct of training courses in risk analysis and transparency
requirements (establishment of enquiry points, notifications procedures, etc.).G/SPS/GEN/206
Page 3
Infrastructure development
8. The implementation of the SPS Agreement by developing countries requires appropriate
technical and scientific capacity of these countries to meet their obligations under the SPS Agreement.
As recognized in the Agreement, substantial inve stments may be required to enable an exporting
developing country Member to fulfil the SPS requirements of an importing Member.  In such cases,Article 9.2 provides that the importing Member shall consider providing adequate technical
assistance.  Demand for "field-related" specific technical assistance, likely involving credits,
donations or grants, is increasing.  This category of technical assistance is frequently delivered by way
of human and financial bilateral assistance by WTO Members.  It can also be provided by the relevant
standard-setting international organizations (althoug h the financial and human resources are limited), as
well as by other relevant regional and international organizations.
9. Infrastructure development covers two distinct although complementary aspects:  (i)  "soft"
infrastructure and (ii)  "hard" infrastructure.
"Soft" infrastructure development
10. "Soft" infrastructure development deals mostly with training activities.  This type of technical
assistance includes the formation of technical and scientific personnel, including food chemists and
microbiologists, veterinarians, epid emiologists, plant pathologists, etc .  This can be done through
financial and/or human support in the developing country itself, or in the country providing this type
of assistance.  This type of technical assistance also includes training of technical and scientific
experts in the application of specific techniques and procedures such as:  control and inspection,
surveillance, certification, laboratory practices , risk assessment, dia gnosis techniques, HACCP
techniques, etc .
11. Technical assistance dealing with the development of national regulatory frameworks  is also
critical.  The SPS Agreement has led numerous developing countries to entirely review and
reformulate their regulatory frameworks.  International organizations are often solicited to give advice
in this regard and several Members have also reported assisting with the development of regulatory
systems.  One important aspect in this type of activities is harmonization of national regulations andinternational standards, guidelines and recommendations.
12. Finally, this type of technical assistance includes a range of other activities such as the
provision or development of SPS-related electronic software or consumer education  programmes.
"Hard" infrastructure development
13. Proper implementation of the SPS Agreement provisions depends on adequate field
equipment and infrastructure.  Laboratories, testing equipment, veterinary services, processing and
storage facilities, computer databases, disease information/monitoring systems , are some of the
identified areas where technical assistance is required.
14. This type of technical assistance also covers other aspects of infrastructure related to the SPS
Agreement.  For example, the establishment of disease-free regions which, in addition to the experts'
know-how, requires substantial investments in infrastructure, such as the establishment of "buffer-zones", surveillance systems, etc.
Alternative approaches
15. This paper does not attempt to establish an exclusive typology for technical assistance.  Other
approaches can be taken.  For instance, technical assistance activities could be organized according toG/SPS/GEN/206
Page 4
the "stable to table" chain.  This would classify technical assistance on the basis of:  (i) the production
level needs (safe inputs: clean water, appropriate seeds, safe fertilizers;  safe use of fertilizers,
pesticides and insecticides, etc.;  safe techniques of animal husbandry, product harvesting, storage,
etc.);  (ii) the processing  level needs (safe processing plants;  HACCP;  testing/inspection;  safe
packaging, etc.);  (iii) the marketing level needs (transportation, refrigerated containers,
uncontaminated containers, storage, wholesale and retail marketing conditions, etc.);  and (iv) the
regulatory  level needs (national laws and regulations, in ternational standards, participation in the
standard-setting bodies work, participation in the SPS Committee work, etc.).
16. Another approach is to classify technical assistance taking into account three broad
parameters:  (i) the regulatory framework (need to modernize laws, decrees, regulations, etc., taking
into account international standards, guidelines and recommendations);  (ii) the institutional
framework (need to strengthen developing countries' participation in the international standard-setting
bodies and to encourage their technical independence and financial sustainability);  and (iii) the
technical framework (need for risk assessment techniques;  quarantine procedures;  emergency
systems, etc.).
17. In the approaches presented above, the same typology would apply to food safety, animal or
plant health, the three areas covered by the SPS Agreement.  However, in practice, much of thetechnical assistance in the SPS area, in particular at the technical level, addresses specific needs in one
or another of these areas.  Therefore, a possible alternative is to classify technical assistance
accordingly.  Such an approach is illustrated in the annex which lists types of activities provided by
Codex, OIE and IPPC.  The responses to the technical assistance questionnaire circulated by the
Secretariat shows that many such activities take place bilaterally or regionally.
3
                                                     
3 G/SPS/GEN/143/Rev.1/Add.1 and G/SPS/GEN/181G/SPS/GEN/206
Page 5
ANNEX
Food safety
This is the typical area of competence of the FAO/WHO Codex Alimentarius.  Specifically, FAO
provides technical assistance to its member countries:
- in developing national food control strategies;
- up-dating food control laws and regulations;
- developing food control policies and procedures;
- assessing management and organizational requirements for establishing effective food-
control programmes;
- recommending equipment, facilities, and resource needs, including personnel and
budgetary requirements;
- establishing performance requirements and quality assurance programmes;
- providing laboratory methods a nd improving laboratory practices;
- developing inspection, sampling and investigative procedures;
- developing information and data handling and analysis systems;
- establishing voluntary and regulatory compliance policies and procedures;- developing co-operative industry assi stance and developmental programmes;
- establishing consumer education programmes;
- assisting in developing the management a nd operational procedures for specialized food
control programmes such as those needed to manage food control related problems
associated with: natural disasters (eart hquake, flooding);  foodbor ne disease outbreaks
(such as the cholera outbreak in Latin America); and, industrial accidents resulting in
toxic material spills or exposure (such as Chernobyl);
- strengthening national Codex Contact Points and national Codex Coordinating
Committees.
4
Animal health
This is the typical area of competence of the OIE.  The following are some of the types of technical
assistance provided by this organization:
- disease information systems, methods of animal disease surveillance and diagnosis,
harmonization of the registration and c ontrol of vaccines and chemoprophylactic
products;
- veterinary drug registration, harmonization of  technical requirements for registration of
medicinal products;
- regional training activities on epidemiology , including the setup of epidemiological
monitoring systems;
- FMD control/elimination programmes;
- organization of animal disease surveillance systems in Africa;- diagnosis of animal disease and assistance and advice in combating them;
- Brucellosis control in the Middle East;
- training and information programmes on veterinary drugs;
- evaluation of veterinary services and laboratories;
- practical courses on the control of veterinary drug residues;- courses on the administration and mana gement of Veterinary Services;
- surveillance activities and risk assessment.
                                                     
4 For more details, see G/SPS/GEN/39.G/SPS/GEN/206
Page 6
Plant protection
This is the typical area of competence of the IPPC.  However, the IPPC technical assistance resources
are limited and most of the related plant protection te chnical assistance is provided by the FAO.  This
assistance is given through the regular programme as well as the FAO field programme.  The followingare some of the types of technical assistance provided by this organization:
- upgrading of plant quarantine services;
- assessment and improvement of quarantine legislation;
- provision of basic facilities for inspection and treatment;
- establishment of survey programmes;
- training of staff in quarantine procedures (including developments in harmonization
in plant quarantine);
- training in pest risk analysis and in phytosanitary treatment and inspection;
- capacity building and strengthening plant protection infrastructures;
- dispute avoidance;
- updating legislation;
- emergency programmes;- regional harmonization and upgrading phytosanitary systems;
- plant/animal/human health policy alignment and upgrading;
- certification and import inspection services;
- questionnaire to help developing countries to evaluate their phytosanitary capabilities
and identify their weaknesses.
5
__________
                                                     
5 Initiative undertaken by the Chairperson of the Interim Commission for Phytosanitary Measures, with
assistance from New Zealand.