. /.  WORLD TRADE  
ORGANIZATION   
G/SPS/GEN/1199 
10 October 2012 
 (12-5508) 
Committee on Sanitary and Phytosanitary Measures Original: French 
  
 
NATIONAL SPS WORKSHOP ORG ANIZED BY THE WTO IN 
MOROCCO (RABAT) ON 18 AND 19 SEPTEMBER 2012 
 
Communication from Morocco 
  
 The following communication, received on 9 Octobe r 2012, is being circulated at the request 
of the delegation of Morocco.  
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 1. In the framework of its SPS technical assist ance activities in 2012 (G/SPS/GEN/997/Rev.2) 
and in cooperation with the Moroccan National Office for Food Safety (ONSSA, ANN and PNI), 
the WTO SPS Committee organized a national work shop on the WTO SPS Agreement in Morocco 
on 18-19 September 2012.  This was made possible by the direct financial support of the Belgian 
Development Agency (BTC), which mobilized funds for the organization of this activity in Morocco. 
2. This was an information workshop for technical  staff working under the national authorities 
responsible for sanitary and phytosanitary control.  It also aimed to info rm private operators and 
professionals and to raise their awareness of th e importance of the SPS Agreement and the economic 
and social impact of SPS measures on internationa l trade and the economy, particularly in the 
developing countries. 
3. The programme involved the following presentations: 
1. Introduction to the World Trade Organizati on and to the Agreement on the Application 
of Sanitary and Phytosanitary Measures: 
 - Brief history of the multilateral trading system 
 - Non-tariff measures in international trade 
 - History of the SPS Agreement 
 - Definition of SPS measures  
2. Key principles of the Agreement on the Application of Sanitary and Phytosanitary 
Measures: 
 - Scientific justification 
 - Harmonization  - Risk assessment  - Precautionary measures  - Coherence 
 - Least trade-restrictive measures 
 - Equivalence  - Regionalization G/SPS/GEN/1199 
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   - Control, inspection and approval procedures 
 - Special and differential treatment  
3. Morocco's main concerns in the sanitary and phytosanitary area, with respect to animal 
health, plant health and food and feed safety 
4. SPS Committee:  Function and role 
 - Participation and meetings 
 - Specific trade concerns and options for resolving them  - Topical issues in the SPS Committee:  special and differential treatment, private 
standards, review of the SPS Agreement 
 
5. Morocco's experience with the im plementation of the SPS Agreement 
6. Trade-related technical assistance - activities of the WTO and the STDF 
4. The workshop ended with a self-assessment t est and discussions on the topics presented.  
It was attended by 60 Administration staff, 20 private-sector professionals and representatives of 
two technical journals.  The opening ceremony was ch aired by the Secretary-General of the Ministry 
of Agriculture and Maritime Fisheries, in the pr esence of the Minister-Counsellor of the Embassy of 
Belgium in Rabat and the Director-General of the ONSSA. 
5. The workshop was widely covered by the written media, radio and television: 
 - Printed media:  eight articles 
 - Electronic media:  eight sites 
 - Radio:  three stations 
 - Television:  two channels   All those present (representatives of the Admini stration and the private sector) expressed their 
satisfaction and agreed that th e workshop had been a success. 
 
6. Morocco would like to extend its sincere thanks to the WTO, and particularly 
to Mr Rolando Alcala for his expertise and hi s support for the activities of the workshop. 
7. Morocco would also like to thank the BTC for its financial support which enabled Morocco to 
organize this event in excellent conditions. 
8. Morocco would like to stress the importanc e of organizing these national workshops, 
particularly on behalf of the developing countr ies, and invites developed Member countries to 
undertake to help these countries to implemen t the SPS Agreement and support the competent 
authorities in these areas. 
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