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21 June 2022  
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PRESS RELEASE  
TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE  
Australia pledges AUD 2.9 million to boost developing -country 
exports of safe food  
Australia is contributing AUD 2.9 million (approximately CHF 2 million) to help developing 
countries and least -developed countries (LDCs) deepen their integration into the world economy. 
The grant to the Standards and Trade Development Facility (STDF) aims  to assist countries in 
strengthening their sanitary and phytosanitary (SPS) capacities, enabling them to access global 
and regional markets more easily.  
 
WTO Director -General Ngozi Okonjo -Iweala said: "I thank Australia for its generous support of 
develo ping countries and LDCs in tackling SPS -related challenges keeping agricultural producers 
out of global agricultural markets. This will benefit producers along regional and global value 
chains, helping them raise export revenues, incomes and living standar ds. The STDF will continue 
to deliver inclusive and safe trade solutions worldwide, with Australia's ongoing support."  
 
Australia’s Minister for Trade and Tourism, Senator Don Farrell, said: "Australia’s AUD 2.9 million 
contribution to the STDF makes us on e of the Facility’s most active supporters. The Australian 
Government is steadfast in its commitment to open and transparent agricultural markets. We are 
pleased to support developing and least -developed countries in the Indo -Pacific to integrate into 
and benefit from access to the multi -billion -dollar global agriculture market."  
 
Australia is extending its long -standing partnership with the STDF by committing AUD 2.9 million 
from 2022 to 2024 to help developing countries meet international food safety and healt h 
standards . The STDF will use Australia's contribution to support the development and roll -out of 
innovative SPS projects across various sectors, countries and regions, to promote knowledge 
sharing, to foster collaboration among partners and to strengthen  monitoring and evaluation of 
results.  
 
Overall, Australia through its Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade has contributed close to CHF 
18 million to various WTO trust funds since 2002, including CHF 2.2 million to the STDF, not 
including this latest disbursement.  
 
Developing countries, including in the Pacific and beyond, are encouraged to apply to the STDF for 
project and project preparation grants. The next deadline for submission of funding proposals is 12 
August 2022. Information on how to apply is available here. To date, the STDF has funded more 
than 230 projects benefiting LDCs and other developing countries.  
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  The contribution by Austra lia will also strengthen the STDF's coordination platform, connecting 
diverse stakeholders across agriculture, health, trade and development to share experiences, find 
opportunities for collaboration and promote a more coherent approach to SPS capacity 
development.  
 
The STDF is a global multi -stakeholder partnership to facilitate safe and inclusive trade, 
established by the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) of the United Nations, the World 
Organisation for Animal Health (WOAH), the World Bank Group, the World Health Organization 
(WHO) and the WTO, which houses and manages the partnership. The STDF responds to evolving 
needs, drives inclusive trade and contributes to sustainable economic growth, food security and 
poverty reduction, in support of  the United Nations' Global Goals.  
 
 
END