WORLD TRADE
ORGANIZATIONG/TBT/W/203
4 April 2003
(03-1872)
Committee on Technical Barriers to Trade Original:  English
TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE AND CAPACITY BUILDING IN THE TBT FIELD
Submission by New Zealand
I. INTRODUCTION1. New Zealand supports the development of pr ogrammes of technical assistance and capacity
building targeted at the specific needs and priorities of developing country Members.  In taking note
of the Second Triennial Review’s emphasis on enhancing the coordination and cooperation of donor
countries and organizations
1, and in view of the responses to the Secretariat’s survey of developing
country Members’ specific needs2, New Zealand offers the following observations on its experience in
the provision of technical assistance and capacity building on TBT matters.
II. BACKGROUND
2. New Zealand contracts Standards New Zealand (SNZ) as its national TBT enquiry point.
Since 1998 SNZ has undertaken formal and informal dialogue with standards and conformance bodies
in Latin America and Asia, and provided training and capacity building on the development and
management of international standards and technical infrastructures.  In 2002, SNZ prepared under
contract to APEC a handbook on notification authorities and national enquiry points under the
TBT and SPS Agreements, and conducted training seminars on recommended procedures in Peru and
Thailand.  Further information on SNZ’s experience in the provision of technical assistance and
capacity building is attached at Annex.
3. In 1999 SNZ visited Argentina, Brazil, Chile a nd Peru to explain and promote a Co-operation
Proposal that it had drafted with the New Zealand Ministry of Commerce (now the Ministry for
Economic Development).  This fact -finding mission also doubled as a preliminary needs assessment
for capacity building in the region.  The proposal received comment from Latin national standards andconformance bodies, and their Foreign Affairs and Trade Ministries.  The proposal resulted in two
specific project areas being established:  MERCOSUR-CER Dialogue on Standards and
Conformance, and the Training of Senior Mana gement of Latin American Standards Bodies.
4. In 2000, SNZ visited Myanmar, Laos and Cambodia.  The visits involved assessing the
policy, metrology, standards, certification and accreditation frameworks and identification of potential
projects that would build capacity in standards and conformance.  Also identified were further
development and assessment of training needs in standards and conformance infrastructure.
                                                     
1 G/TBT/9.
2 G/TBT/W/193.G/TBT/W/203
Page 2
III. SEQUENCING
5. On the basis of its experience in the provision of technical assistance and capacity building in
the TBT context, Standards New Zealand have identified a certain logical sequencing for the
implementation of its technical assistance projects as follows:
• Clear articulation of what elements within an economy are needed to support WTO TBT
obligations.
• Consideration of the current structures in the developing country that support these TBT
obligations.
• Review of the trade and technical infrastructure policies within a developing economy,
including consideration of service delivery functions, and the role of government and privatesector bodies in delivering on policy outcomes.
• The drafting and passing of necessary legislation.
• Legal and scientific metrology assistance (if required).
• Training on the writing of documentary standards and adoption of international standards (if
required).
• Training and development of a government accreditation body (there should be one
government accreditor covering both laboratory and other forms of accreditation).
• Training on the use of mutual recognition arrangements and unilateral equivalence by
developing economies to short circuit any need to establish and develop an extensive
conformity assessment body.
• Training in the involvement of the economy in the international standards development
process.
6. The stages outlined above correspond to several of the specific needs identified by developing
country Members in their responses to the Secretariat’s survey, as set out in G/TBT/W/193.  This
includes benchmarking the requested needs against an assessment of the elements needed to supportTBT obligations;  the establishment and development of national infrastructure to assist with the
implementation and administration of the TBT Agreement (including standardization and conformity
assessment); improving national and regional coordination amongst regulatory authorities and other
relevant bodies on TBT matters; and participating in the work of relevant bodies, e.g. international
standardizing activities.
7. Of course, a sequenced approach will not be appropriate in all cases.  In addition, it may be
necessary to revisit earlier stages in the sequence to identify any gaps in the results of earlier projects,
to ensure technical assistance is having a sustainable impact.  However New Zealand’s experience
highlights that in addition to identifying the spec ific needs in developing countries for technical
assistance and capacity building, it is important to get the sequence right in the delivery of such
assistance.  In this context, New Zealand recalls Mexico’s statement that a great deal of technicalassistance provided to developing Members thus far has tended to focus more on enhancing human
resource capability than enhancing the supporting technical infrastructure.
3  Mexico’s suggestion of
the development of a quality assurance system (based on relevant international standards) for
government departments in charge of applying TBT provisions needs further reflection, but
                                                     
3 G/TBT/W/189.G/TBT/W/203
Page 3
New Zealand’s experience parallels Mexico’s in poin ting to the need to get the proper infrastructural
framework in place as the first priority in the provision of technical assistance and capacity building.
8. A sequenced approach should not preclude there being multiple donors working with a single
recipient country.  However in cases where multiple donors are present, a sequenced approach furtherhighlights the need for coordinated and transparent de livery of assistance.  This will help ensure that
different stages of a sequence are not unnecessarily duplicated or left out all together.  Accordingly,
New Zealand supports ideas to improve the coordination and transparency of technical assistance
delivery.
IV. CONCLUSION
9. New Zealand welcomes the emphasis placed on extending technical assistance and capacity
building on TBT matters to help Members successfully implement and administer the Agreement.  It
is clear that the provision of technical assistance  must be demand-driven, but New Zealand believes it
is desirable that such assistance should also be carefully sequenced in order to ensure its long-termsuccess.  New Zealand offers these views as a contribution to the 18 March 2003 Workshop on
Technical Assistance and the Third Triennial Revi ew of the TBT Agreement, which is due to be
completed in 2003.G/TBT/W/203
Page 4
ANNEX
Training and Capacity Buildi ng Provided by SNZ since 1998
Seminar on Issues in International Standardization, 1998
This project was undertaken for ASEAN.  The seminar was on key issues in ISO/IEC
(International Organization for Standardization & International Electrotechnical Commission)
Standards.  The Seminar incorporated a workshop on ISO Technical Committee 207 (Environment)
developments.
Training in Development and Management of International Standards, 1998
SNZ provided a one-month training programm e in New Zealand to two ASEAN members’
standards officials in ISO standards and development.
Training in Development and Management of Technical Infrastructures (Standards and Conformance
Systems), 1999
SNZ provided a one-month training programm e in New Zealand to two ASEAN countries’
standards officials in standards and conformity systems.  The programme covered the followingelements of standards and conformance structures:
• An understanding of the whole technical infrastructure in New Zealand.
• An appreciation of the change management process that Standards New Zealand has
undergone in response to operating in a self-funded environment.
• The policy debate surrounding performance based regulation and the use of standards as trade
barriers.
• Specific improvements that Standards New Zealand has made to the traditional standards
development process and engaging stakeholders in the economy.
Training in Development and Management of Technical Infrastructures (Standards and Conformance
Systems), 2000
SNZ provided a one-month training progra mme to two ASEAN and one Latin American
countries’ standards officials in standards and conformity systems.  The programme was based in
New Zealand and covered similar elements of standards and conformance structures to those outlined
for the 1999 programme above.
Standards and Conformance Training, 2001
This programme involved bringing four senior Latin American officials from their national
standards bodies to New Zealand for a period of one month.  During this month, they spent time withSNZ to understand how SNZ operates and meets it s WTO/ISO/IEC obligations.  In addition, the
officials learnt about the full standards and conformance infrastructure (i.e. policy, regulation, legal
metrology, physical metrology, standards, accreditation and conformity assessment).G/TBT/W/203
Page 5
Standards and Conformance Training, 2001
This programme involved bringing two senior ASEAN country officials from their national
standards bodies to New Zealand for a period of one month.  During this month, they spent time with
SNZ to understand how SNZ operates and meets it s WTO/ISO/IEC obligations.  In addition, the
officials learnt about the full standards and conformance infrastructure (i.e. policy, regulation, legal
metrology, physical metrology, standards, accreditation and conformity assessment).
2002 APEC Handbook on Notification Authorities and National Enquiry Points under the Technical
Barriers to Trade and Sanitary and Phytosanitary Agreements of the World Trade Organization.
This handbook was intended to facilitate the establishment and effective operation of Enquiry
Points and Notification Authorities required by the WTO Agreements on TBT and SPS.  The project
had two components:  (1) Preparation of the Handbook, and (2) Presentation of 2 training
symposiums - one in Lima, Peru and the other in Bangkok, Thailand to ensure that Americas/Latin
America and Asia/Australasia economies fully understand the WTO requirements.
Sixty-seven representatives from 12 countries attended the Lima symposium, while 75 representativesfrom 16 countries attended the Bangkok symposium.
__________