G/SPS/GEN/2200  
 
22 February  2024 
(24-1628) Page: 1/6 
Committee on Sanitary and Phytosanitary Measures  Original: English  
 
GSO REPORT  ON SPS ACTIVITIES  
GSO REPORT TO THE WTO  COMMITTEE ON  SANITARY AND PHYTOSANITARY MEASURES  
The follow ing communication, received on 20 February  2024, is being circulated at the request of 
the secretariat of the  GCC Standardization Organization  (GSO). 
 
_______________  
 
 
1  INTRODUCTION  
1.1.  GCC Standardization Organization (GSO)  is a non -profit (intergovernmental)  Standardization 
Organization, established by the resolution of the GCC Supreme Council  (22nd Session, Muscat, 
Oman, 30 -31 December 2001) and became operational  in May 2004 , whose memb ership consisted 
of the governments of the Kingdom of Bahrain, the State of Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, the Kingdom of 
Saudi  Arabia,  the United Arab Emirates , and Yemen , which joined GSO in January  2010. 
2  GSO MISSION  
2.1.  The GSO mission is to assist the States of the Cooperation Council for the Arab States of the 
Gulf (GCC)  to achieve the objectives set forth in its Charter and in the GCC Economic Agreement by 
unifying the  various standardization activities and following up on implementation and compliance 
matters  in cooperation and coordination with the standardization bodies in the member States to 
develop the production and service sectors, foster intra -GCC trade, protect consumer s, 
the environment and public health, enhance the GCC economy and its competitiveness and meet 
the requirements of the Gulf Custom Union and Gulf Common Market.  
3  GSO GOVERNANCE STRUCTURE  
3.1.  The Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) : GSO is working under the umbrella of GCC as one of 
its organizations.  
3.2.  The Ministerial Committee for Standardizations affairs (MC) : is the highest authority of 
GSO, vested with all powers relating to its functioning. The MC consists of respective Ministers of 
Comm erce, Industry, and Investment in GCC member States.  
3.3.  The GSO Technical Council (TC) : consists of the respective Directors of the National 
Standards Bodies (NSBs) of GSO member States, and reports to MC.  
3.4.  The Presidency : is headed by the President and consis ts of GSO Professional Staff to facilitate 
the activities of GSO, and reports to MC and TC.  
3.5.  The GSO Steering and Technical Committees (STCs) : consist of technical experts 
representing each National Standards Body of the member States. The STCs report to th e GSO TC 
and are responsible for the planning, coordination and monitoring of all the technical work of GSO 
in standards, conformity assessment, metrology, and notification.  G/SPS/GEN/2200  
 
- 2 - 
 
  4  GSO STRATEGY 2021 -2025  
4.1.  GSO has defined its Strategic Plan for the year 2025, appro ved by the Ministerial Committee 
for Standardization, and that is to be the trusted regional organization of excellence in 
standardization activities, and the first enabler for the Gulf Common Market. To achieve its vision, 
GSO relies on the successful imp lementation of three main strategic themes, the first of which is 
organizational excellence - "Accurate implementation of GSO's activities and operations with high 
efficiency, lowest costs and on time, to provide value -added services to GCC member States".  
The second theme is being a regional organization pioneer – where GSO becomes a major and 
reliable reference in GCC member States for standardization activities by positioning itself within the 
global map of standardization organizations and bodies, and bu ilding effective strategic partnerships 
to support trade, industry and economy in GCC member States. Finally, the third theme is to 
strengthen the economic integration among the GCC member States – by way of GSO's contribution 
to achieving a common Gulf ma rket and economic growth for member States through 
standardization activities, conformity procedures, and unified and effective control over products, 
as the first enablers of the Gulf Common Market. Moreover, all GSO programmes, projects, and 
activities h ave been aligned with these themes.  
5  STANDARDS AND METROLOGY  
5.1.  GSO has developed more than 2 7,155 Unified Gulf Standards and Technical Regulations , 
including  about 1,24 2 mandatory technical regulations. Almost 55% of GSO standards are adopted 
from (ISO), 18% of those standards are adopted from (IEC) as endorsement, 1% of food standards 
are adopted from Codex Alimentarius, about 7% prepared by GSO, and the rema ining percentage 
is adopted from other international and regional organizations. GSO adopted ISO/IEC directives for 
technical work as a basis for its own directives to ensure that GSO technical committees follow 
international practices in the standards dev elopment process. At present, there are 4 6 GSO/TCs and 
TCs sub -committees for standards development representing all GSO member States and covering 
most of the GCC sectors.  
5.2.  GSO established and hosted the Gulf Association for Metrology ( GULFMET ) as a Regional 
Metrology Organization (RMO), bringing together National Metrology Institutes (NMIs) of 
GCC countries. The International Committee of Weights and Measures (CIPM) in BIPM decided 
to grant GULFMET full membership in the Joint Committee of the Regional Metrology 
Organizations  and the BIPM (JCRB), with a voice and the right to vote in CIPM meetin g No. 110 
dated on 22 -24 June 2021.  
5.3.  The GulfMet members are GSO member States in addition to associate members (Bosnia and 
Herzegovin a; Egypt ; Türkiye; South Korea ; Hong Kong,  China;  and Iraq ). 
5.4.  More than 31 Interlaboratory comparisons (ILCs) were organized  by GULFMET to verify that a 
laboratory provides correct results within the stated measurement of uncertainty.  
6  CONFORMITY ASSESSMENT  
6.1.  GSO developed the GCC Conformity Asses sment Scheme  in pursuance of reducing the technical 
barriers of trade and facilitating the free movement of commodities across borders within the GCC 
member States and the rest of the world. Within the framework of the Gu lf System for Safety 
Monitoring of Products in the GCC Common Market, GSO has issued Horizontal Technical 
Regulations, Vertical Technical Regulations, as well as other Technical Guides. Three Technical 
Regulations have been implemented with the Gulf Conformity Marking , namely, the GSO Technical 
Regulation on Toys , the GSO Technical Regulation on Low Voltage Electrical Equipment and 
Appliances, and rece ntly issued the GSO Technical Regulation for Water -Saving Products.  
6.2.  GSO has also developed the Gulf Conformity Tracking System (GCTS)  which has proven to be 
a great success in the implementation of the GSO LV technical regulation, and helps to track both 
the supply chain and technical conformity.  
6.3.  GSO has developed the Electronic Conformity Cer tificate Scheme (ECCS)  to facilitate the 
certifications procedures, enhance the quality of serves, to shorten the time of review and to have 
a detailed data for the benefit of GSO stakeholders. The main objective for  the GSO Certification G/SPS/GEN/2200  
 
- 3 - 
 
  Scheme is to verify the compliance of the related products with GSO technical Regulations to assure 
of their safety for users and to protect the environment in the region. GSO issued 458,589 conformity 
certificates for vehicles, tir es, and motorcycles.  
6.4.  GSO is the notifying authority by decision of the Board of Directors, May 2013. GSO approved 
89 notified bodies in many countries around the world. 100,000 products have received the G -Mark 
through the GCC Conformity Tracking System . Additionally, 1,019 free Proficiency Testing Programs 
(PTs) for 688 GCC laboratories have been organized as one  of the main activities of the 
Gulf Association for Laboratories (GCCLAB) , which is an open network for laboratories and 
supporting co mpanies operating in the GCC member States. It was established as an initiative of 
the GSO and the recommendations of the first GCC Conference for Laboratories Proficiency (Dubai, 
13 March 2013).  
7  CAPACITY BUILDING  
7.1.  GSO invests in strengthening the knowledge , skills, and know -how of specialists in NSBs 
through extensive and blended training and technical assistance programs. GSO established 
the GCC Standardization Training C enter  to meet the needs and requirements of GSO members, and 
to help them participate effectively in the development of international standards, as well as towards 
increasing their competence in good standardization prac tices (GSPs). An annual training plan is 
designed based on the needs of NSBs, and training is to be delivered through highly qualified experts 
in cooperation with international and regional standardization organizations.  
7.2.  More than 16 ,000 participants since  2007, and more than 600 training courses have been 
organized by GSO in cooperation with member States.  
8  INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY (IT) SOLUTIONS - INTEGRATION WITH INTERNATIONAL 
AND REGIONAL ORGANIZATIONS  
8.1.  GSO has developed many platforms and e -services  and continuously keeps working on its 
content development and improvements to meet the needs of the member States covering all 
standardization activities.  
8.2.  ISO and GSO have organized many bilateral virtual meetings and workshops related to ISO  API 
Gateway and ISO Global Directory, Standardization Identity Federation (SIF), and Standards 
Authoring using XML.  
8.3.  GSO IT Systems are integrated with ISO API Gateway.  Starting negotiations with "Inera" for 
using their "eXtyles" word add -in to convert GSO Standards from Word to XML. Work is still in 
progress on this initiative.  
8.4.  Within the adoption agreement signed between GSO and IEC in Shanghai 2019, the IEC 
provides t he GSO access to the FTP server of all IEC standards with a generic watermark and via 
the library server. GSO and IEC have already started their discussion about using the IEC API 
Gateway to access the metadata and unprotected standards on behalf of GSO me mbers, for which 
GSO is hosting their National Standards Stores, such as Oman and Kingdom of Bahrain.  
8.5.  Also, GSO signed copyright license agreements with the European Committee for 
Standardization and the European Committee for Electrotechnical Standardizat ion (CEN -CENELEC), 
by which both sides have full access to each other's standards metadata, and integrated with the 
(CEN CENELEC) API Gateway. GSO IT Systems are integrated with ASTM Standard Publishing 
Application (SPA) API as well. Such international and  regional cooperation enables GSO to develop 
a unified platform to search different standards catalogues and facilitate the adoption process for 
standards at the GCC level.  
9  INTERNATIONAL COOPERATION  
9.1.  The GSO, with the objective to establish mutually benefic ial cooperation with the relevant 
international and regional organizations, continues to promote international standards through 
76 MoUs and Cooperation agreements  with many international and regional organizations.  G/SPS/GEN/2200  
 
- 4 - 
 
  9.2.  GSO is an observer member in many international organizations, including, the International 
Standardization Organization (ISO), the International Electrotechnical Commission (IEC), the Codex 
Alimentarius (CAC), the World Trade Organization (WTO) TBT/SPS, t he International Organization 
of Legal Metrology (OMIL), CEN CENELEC, Standards and Metrology Institute for Islamic Countries 
(SMIIC), Arabic Industrial Development and Mining Organization (AIDSMO), Pan American 
Standards Commission (COPANT), African Organ ization for Standardization (ARSO), the Southern 
African Development Community (SADC). GSO is a full member of the International 
Telecommunication Union (ITU), and a member of the Consultation Group to the WOAH Observatory, 
and The Energy and Carbon Adviso ry Council (International Code Council).  
9.3.  GSO is participating in many key international and regional meetings within the framework of 
the MoUs signed with its partners.  
9.4.  GSO participated in the regular meeting of the SPS Committee, held virtually on 
23-25 March 2022, as well as at the informal session on 23 March 2022 and the Thematic Session 
on trade facilitative approaches to pesticide MRLs, including substances not approved for use in an 
import market on 22 March 2022.  
9.5.  GSO participated in many SPS online meetings with other related organizations during the 
period (March -May 2022).  
9.6.  GSO submitted joint notifications of some SPS draft standards on behalf of its member States.  
9.7.  GSO updated the technical regulation (GSO 1016) related to microbiological standards  
(NOT Published Standard) which were approved by the relevant Technical Committee during the 
Gulf Food Week (28 March 2022) and were preceded by a workshop for the committee devoted to 
discussing the project in its final form (2 March 2022).  
9.8.  GSO organized "The 6th GCC Laboratory Proficiency Conference" under the patronage of 
H.E. The Minister of Commerce, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, in cooperation with Saudi Standards, 
Metrology and Quality Organization (SASO), that took place in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, from 
18-19 October 2022, under the theme "Laboratory Proficiency for Food Security and Sustainability". 
The two -day Laboratory Proficiency Conference targeted 300 officials and specialists of laboratories 
in public and private sectors and was honored by ISO SG, IA F Chair, ILAC Vice Chair, (IAAC) Chair, 
SMIIC SG, ARSO SG, GAC DG, and high -level experts from ISO, GSO, GOIC, ASTM, SFDA, Siemens 
(Middle East), SAC, and GSO member States.  
9.9.  GSO issued 241 standards and technical regulations in the food sector during 2022 and 2023:  
− 137 Gulf Standards;  
− 53 Gulf technical regulations;  
− 29 translations of standards and technical regulations;  
− 22 technical amendments and typographical corrections.  
9.10.   Some posts and activities attended during the last period:  
− WTO SPS Committee meeting s and accompanying events, 22 -25 March 2022 (virtually);  
− Several workshops with Codex and the Regional Near East Committee of the 
Codex  Alimentarius Commission, CCNE – Codex;  
− Several workshops for Arab countries in the field of encouraging participation in Codex 
activities throughout the year;  
− Special Halal Conference of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) (online) 
14 February 2022;  
− Organizing the Gulf Food Week and the meetings of the Food and Halal Standards 
Committees (Riyadh, M arch and November 2022);  
− Nutrition And Food Safety Summit - Nutrition Days (Dubai, 23 -26 May 2022), organized by 
the European Union;  
− Annual meeting of the Codex Alimentarius Commission (CAC 45) Rome - November 2022, 
and the meetings of some technical commi ttees of the Codex Alimentarius Commission ; 
− Meetings of the Arab initiative for points of contact with the Codex Alimentarius Commission 
(several meetings);  G/SPS/GEN/2200  
 
- 5 - 
 
  − Training programme on the activities of participation in Codex work (Tunisia, 
September  2022; Jorda n, October 2022) ; 
− Participating in organizing the USDA Nutrition and Food Safety Summit Series 2: The Safety 
of Food Additives, in cooperation with USDA, Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Water 
Resources, Michigan University, American Chamber of Comme rce (AMCHAM), and 
US Embassy in Riyadh. Over 150 food regulators and government officials from all 
GCC countries, USDA Officials, speakers from FAO -JECFA, FDA, Michigan State University, 
food additives industry, and AmCham Dubai Food and Beverage Regulatio ns Committee. 
This summit was under the patronage of H.E. Dr. Saud Al -Habsi, Oman’s Minister of 
Agriculture, Fisheries and Water Resources. Participants have reached mutual understanding 
on a number of food regulatory issues , and agreed to keep the dialogu e open on other key 
issues to further facilitate trade and maintain food safety. Science -based regulations and 
referencing international regulations like Codex were the optimum achievements of this 
summit ; 
− Participating in organizing "The 2nd Arab C odex Colloquium", Muscat, 10 -11 June 2023, 
in cooperation with USDA, GFORSS, Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Water Resources, 
Food Safety and Quality Center, Sultanate of Oman. This event was attended by the 
Chairperson of C odex and the representatives of the US C odex Office (USDA), WHO, and 
GSO. The Colloquium aimed to review the accomplishments of the Arab Code Initiative and 
the progress of the Working Groups created through the Arab Codex Initiative. 
The Colloquium had an open discussion with the C odex Chairperson on the engagement of 
the Arab Region in Codex Proceedings, Future Opportunities ; 
− A bilateral Meeting was held between the GSO President Mr Saud Al -Khusaibi and 
Codex  Chair, Dr. Steven Wearne to discuss the cooperation between the two organizati ons 
to enhance the work of the Codex Alimentarius Commission and offer regional technical and 
capacity building support to the food safety and fair trade, Muscat, 11 June 2023 ; 
− Forming the Gulf Codex Alimentarius Working Group (GSO/TC05 -CODEX -WG1), affiliated to 
the Gulf Technical Committee for Food and Agricultural Standards (TC05); which held its 
first meeting during the 2nd Arab Codex Colloquium , 10-11 June 2023, Muscat, in the 
presence of Codex Chair, Dr. Steven Wearne ; 
− Supporting organizing and participating in the "Oman 6th Food Safety and Quality 
Conference", Muscat, 12 -14 June 2023, under the patronage and presence of 
H.E. the Minister of Commerce, Industry, and Investment Promotion; also, with the 
presence of H.E . the Mi nister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Water Resources, GSO President. 
AIDSMO DG, C odex Chairperson, and representatives of US C odex USDA, and UNIDO, with 
45 papers, 60 experts, and 400 participants ; 
− Organizing the unified Gulf Halal system workshop, 22 June  2023, Muscat. Many regional 
standardization organizations were invited, such as AIDSMO, GCC Accreditation Center 
(GAC), Standards and Metrology Institute for Islamic Countries (SMIIC), International 
Islamic Fiqh Academy (IIFA) - a subsidiary organ of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation 
(OIC), and other relevant parties ; 
− GSO organize d a workshop titled "Participation in C odex Meetings: Best Practices", for GCC 
Codex Contact Points, Qatar, Doha, 19 -20 September 2023 ; 
− GSO participated in the WTO National Workshop on the Agreement on the Application of 
Sanitary and Phytosanitary (SPS) Measures and Technical Barriers to Trade (TBT) 
Agreement, organized by WTO and the Ministry of Commerce in Bahrain, from 23 -26 October 
2023. GSO delivered a presentation on the Gulf Unified Notification System for TBT and SPS. 
The Workshop was presented by the WTO TBT and SPS experts , and with the participation 
of ISO and Codex , and the Com mercial Attaché, Permanent Mission of the Kingdom of 
Bahrain to the UN and other international organizations in Geneva. The interactive workshop 
aimed at enhancing Bahrain's overall understanding of the Agreements, with special 
emphasis on the transparency  provisions and on the ongoing discussions in the SPS and TBT 
Committees. Among other things, the hands -on training exercises will be geared at searching 
for information using the ePing SPS&TBT Platform  and using its other functions ; 
− GSO participated physically in the 46th Session of the Codex Alimentarius Commission 
(CAC46) at FAO headquarters, Italy from 27 November to 2 December 2023. A bilateral 
meeting was held between the GSO del egation and  the Codex Chairperson , and his three 
Deputies, during which the role and activities of GSO were presented, with emphasis on its 
efforts in the field of unification of Gulf standards and technical regulations related to food;  
− GSO received ISO Se cretary General, Mr Sergio M ujica, at its headquarter s in Riyadh, on 
10 January 2024. A high -level bilateral meeting was held to discuss the future collaboration 
between ISO and GSO within the signed MoU. A seminar was organized on " The Role of G/SPS/GEN/2200  
 
- 6 - 
 
  Standardiza tion in Promoting Economic Development and Sustainability in the Gulf Common 
Market";  
− GSO developed (recently) 16 Gulf technical regulations and their amendments, which were 
initially approved by  the GSO Technical Council in its 57th meeting on 30-31 January 2024 
in Doha , and will be submitted to the Ministerial Committee at its next meeting in May 2024;  
− GSO participated in organizing the Bahrain Halal Expo 2024: Bridging the Gap between Halal 
Industr y and Islamic Finance, held under the patronage of His Excellency Minister of Industry 
and Commerce of the Kingdom of Bahrain, 6 -7 February 2024, Manama. A keynote speech 
was delivered by  the GSO President. GSO was a part of the panel discussions highlight ing 
its pioneering role with its members to develop Gulf standards, including standards for Halal 
products and services, in accordance with an annual work plan to meet the needs identified 
by the member States and relevant authorities, relevant technical c ommittees representing 
all member States. GSO, through its participation in the Halal Industry and Services Forum, 
aims at raising awareness of the importance of this sector from an economic perspective 
and consumer safety, coordinating efforts relating to  Halal standards, and striving to build a 
unified Gulf Halal scheme in coordination with the relevant authorities at the Gulf, Islamic, 
regional, and international levels;  
− GSO will participate in the next regular meeting of the SPS Committee, to be held in  hybrid 
format on 20 -22 March 2024.  
9.11.   For more information on GSO Outreach Reviews, please click here. 
 
__________