G/SPS/GEN/1530  
 
27 October 201 6 
(16-5890) Page: 1/4 
Committee on Sanitary and Phytosanitary Measures  Original: E nglish  
 
INFORMATION ON SPS -RELATED ACTIVITIES OF 
THE INTERNATIONAL TR ADE CENTRE (ITC)  
(MARCH – OCTOBER 201 6) 
The following communication, received on 25 October  2016, is being circulated at the request of 
the ITC. 
 
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The International Trade Centre is continuing its efforts to assist enterprises to meet technical 
requirements. An update of selected SPS -related projects of interest to WTO Members is provided 
below.  
1  PROJECTS  
1.1  Afghanistan: Trade -related assistance  
1.1.  A new three -year project funded by the European Union  is being launched in November 2016 
aiming to strengthen human and institutional capacities in trade policy, strategy formulation and 
implementation, with active engagement of the private sector. Quality management,  
SPS measures and regional regulatory cooperation will be amongst the focus areas of this project. 
The Ministry of Commerce and Industry (MoCI) of Afghanistan will be the main counterpart and 
beneficiary of this project.  
1.2  Myanmar: Improving Food Safety and Compliance with SPS Measure s to Increase 
Export Revenues in the Oilseeds Value Chain (STDF 486)  
1.2.  Under this three -year project implemented in close collaboration with the Ministry of 
Commerce, Department of Trade Promotion and Consumer Affairs, the main activities carried out 
in the reporting period are as follows:  
 A baseline study along the value chain and the market surveys were completed. Findings 
were shared at a validation workshop on 6 -7 June 2016, attended by 72 participants 
(17 women). The first meeting of Project Steering Com mitte e was also held on 7 June 
2016;  
 Expressions of interest were publicly launched and selection of the beneficiary processors, 
collectors, experts to be trained has reached its final stage. Tr aining activities will start 
in November 2016; and  
 National Pr oject Manager attended many meetings to synergise and complement work w ith 
other development partners.  
1.3  Sri Lanka: Improving Safety and Quality of Fruits and Vegetables (STDF/PG/354)  
1.3.  The project implemented in close collaboration with the Ceylon Chamber of Commerce and 
the Department of Agriculture, ended on 30 June 2016. During the reporting period:  
 100 more farmers were trained on GAP, pests controls and on  usage of pesticides safety 
kit; 
 A study tour was organized to Thailand for the 12 best performing fa rmers and extension 
officers, enabling a better understanding of good practices and market requirements ; G/SPS/GEN/1530  
 
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   An experience sharing workshop was held for more than 50 stakeholders to cascade the 
lessons learned on implementation of new practices in complianc e with international 
standards;  
 Upon the request of the Government of Sri Lanka, two expert missions were facilitated to 
review the pesticides control system, pesticide laboratory capacity and provide initial 
recommendations in preparation of the EU Food an d Veterinary Office (FVO) audit;  
 Two feasibility missions by an international buyer of dehydrated fruits and international 
supplier of packaging were facilitated by the project to enable linkages with international 
markets ; 
 The final project workshop was hel d on 29 June 2016 where more than 100 stakeholders 
from the public and private sector reviewed the project achievements and discussed its 
sustainability, in particular, with regard to the establishment of the national SPS and TBT 
national committee, adopti on of the Sri Lanka national GAP standard and linkages between 
trained farmers and exporters  
Project information and links to project videos are available under http:// www.spssrilanka.lk . 
1.4  Tajikistan: Develop a pr oject proposal to address food safety needs focusing on the 
National Food Safety Strategy (STDF PPG 447)  
1.4.  ITC is implementing the Project Preparation Grant in close collaboration with the Ministry of 
Economic Devel opment and Trade of Tajikistan:  
 An expert f ield visit was c onducted from 4 –14 April 2016 where consultations were held 
with stakeholders and priority food safety capacity  building needs were identified.  
 Based on the findings, the project proposal is under development.  
1.5  Zimbabwe: Strengthening the na tional sanitary and phytosanitary institutional 
framework  
1.5.  This project aims to improve the SPS infrastructure in order to facilitate exports to the 
European Union and the neighbouring countries. As part of the activities planned , three workshops 
were condu cted during the reporting period.  
 A workshop on Rules of Origin was held on 9 September 2016 where 40 SMEs learnt about 
the methodological basis on which different RoO regimes are based, and asso ciated 
concepts and provisions;  
 A workshop on Risk -Based Offi cial Controls wa s held on 26 -30 September 2016;  
 A third workshop was held with the Ministry of SMEs and Cooperative Development, on the 
WTO Agreements on TBT and SPS ( 11 and 12 October 2016) where 22 SME participated to 
clarify the main concepts related to  standards and technical regulations (TBT/SPS), their 
importance, differences and relationship between these, and relevant information 
resources.  
2  OTHER ACTIVITIES, PU BLICATIONS, OR INTER VENTIONS OF INTEREST  
2.1  SME Competitiveness Outlook SMECO 2016: Meeting t he standard for trade  
2.1.  SME Competitiveness Outlook is the yearly flagship publication of ITC. This year 's edition 
focuses on standards and regulations. The report combines data analysis, academic insights, 
thought leader opinions and case studies to provide  guidance for policymakers, business managers 
and standard setters. Standards and regulations have a major im pact on SME competitiveness. 
By meeting the standards, SMEs increase their chances to connect to international value chains 
and consumers.  
2.2.  The repo rt contains:  
 Governance insights for voluntary sustainability standards;  
 New evidence on how standards and regulations affect trade and business performance;  
 Guidance for SMEs on how to select and implement standards and regulations;  
 A policy action plan t o strengthen SMEs ' ability to meet standards and regulations.  G/SPS/GEN/1530  
 
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  Full report in English and executive summaries in English, French, Spanish and German are 
accessible at http://www.intracen.org/SMEO utlook/SMECO2016/ . 
2.2  Export Quality Management publications and workshops with PTB  
2.3.  Workshops were  conducted in Palestine in March 2016 and in Kyrgyzstan in May 2016 that 
enhanced the knowledge and skills needed by business support organisations to effective ly support 
SMEs to improve quality management and comply with the prevailing market access requirements.  
2.3  Non-Tariff Measures (NTM) programme  
2.4.  The ITC Non -tariff Measures (NTMs) Programme ensures that the concerns of small and 
medium -sized enterprises (SMEs ) about regulatory and procedural trade obstacles are brought to 
the attention of policymakers and other stakeholders at the national, regional and multilateral 
level, enabling them to take concrete actions to address these. The programme also contributes to 
increasing the transparency of NTMs through data collection and dissemination and provides 
thought leadership through research and analysis.  
2.3.1   Transparency of information: trade regulations in ITC 's Market Access Map  
2.5.  ITC continues to be active in collecti ng and disseminating information on trade regulations, 
including SPS and TBT measures. To date, information for 90 countries , searchable by product and 
partner country, are available on ITC 's Market Access Map: http:// www.macmap.org . ITC is 
currently in the process of further developing the module on trade agreements, rules of origin and 
related certification, in order to make the information more accessible especially to small 
businesses.  
2.6.  Complementing this informati on, ITC has also joined forces with UNDESA and the WTO to 
develop a tool that allows companies, enquiry points and other stakeholders to receive alerts about 
SPS & TBT notifications for products and countries of their interest. This tool, called "ePing " 
(http:// www.epingalert.org ) will be officially launched on 8 November 2016 at the occasio n of the 
TBT Committee meeting.  
2.7.  Finally, following up on the NTM Survey results, ITC in collaboration with UNCTAD has 
recently  launched a pilot project in Bangladesh that aims at documenting and better disseminating 
administrative procedures related to exporting, including certification processes. First results are 
expected by end 2016.  
2.3.2   Documenting SME experiences with NTMs: NTM Surveys  
2.8.  In 2015 and 2016, NTM Surv eys were launched in more than ten  countries – the latest in 
Namibia. Surveys document the experiences of exporters and importers with NTMs and allow 
identifying potential for reducing trade cost that these measures often imply, without undermining 
legitimate objectives they serve. 2016 has seen many survey results coming in, based on 
interviews with more than 3,200 companies.  
2.9.  Survey validation workshops were held in Mali (May 2016), Philippines (June 2016), 
Dominican Repub lic (July 2016) and Benin (October 2016). In addition, a high -level roundtable 
focusing on regional integration in ECOWAS was held in June 2016, based on the survey results in 
Benin, Burkina Faso, Côte d 'Ivoire, Guinea, Mali and Senegal. The event, which b rought together 
participants from 13 ECOWAS member countries, was organised in close cooperation with the 
African Development Bank and with the participation of the ECOWAS and UEMOA commissions. 
One of the three thematic roundtables focused on issues relat ed to product quality and food 
safety. Further information about the ECOWAS event can be found on 
http:// www.ntmsurvey.org/ecowas2016 . 
2.10.   For the first time, ITC has also tested a "survey update ". In Sri La nka, around 40 of the 
companies that had been interviewed in 2010 and that reported NTM -related trade obstacles were 
re-contacted in September 2016 to monitor whether changes have occurred and/or new challenges 
have emerged. Overall, the results suggest th at their situation has improved vis-à-vis 2010. 
Particularly administrative processes, including customs clearance at exports and certification G/SPS/GEN/1530  
 
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  processes appear more efficient, notably thanks to investment in automatization. At the same 
time, new challenge s emerged, especially when trading with India and China.  
2.3.3   Upcoming events/dates to note  
 8 November: launch of e -Ping 
 Upcoming stakeholder meetings on NTM survey results:  
Uganda: 26 October  
Comoros:  7 November – jointly with STDF event  
Ecuador: 9 November  
Seychelles: 3 November  
Jordan: 29 November  
Kyrgyzstan: 12 December (date tbc)  
Ethiopia: 12 December (date tbc)  
 EU survey results will be presented for the first time on 17 November in Brussels as part of 
the Market Access Advisory Committee. The survey of o ver 8,000 companies across the 
28 member States gives insights on obstacles to trade between the European Union  and 
developing countries and a benchmark and point of comparison for survey results from 
other countries.  
2.3.4   Further information  
2.11.   NTM-related public ations, including country -specific survey reports, can be accessed free of 
charge at http:// www.intracen.org/publications/ntm . Survey results are available in a more 
interactive format via http:// www.ntmsurvey.org . For more information about ITC 's NTM 
programme, please contact ntm@intracen.org . 
2.4  2016 World Export Development Forum (WEDF): Colombo, Sri Lanka, on 
12-13 October  
2.12.   The 2016 WEDF was co -organized by ITC and the Sri Lanka Export Development Board. The 
event saw participation of the Sri Lankan President and Prime Minister, the heads of the 
Commonwealth and of UNESCAP, Ministers from China and Hungary and a number of important 
and innovative policy makers and business leaders. The event served as a platform for exchange 
of ideas and views of how SMEs can connect and compete on the global stage. Business -to-
business meetings were held for nearly 200 companies. The WE DF 2017 will be held in Hungary.  
For more information, please contact:  
Ludovica Ghizzoni, ITC Adviser on Export Quality Management  
Tel: +41 22 730 06 38 - Fax: +41 22 730 05 76 - E-mail: ghizzoni@intracen.org  
 
Khemraj Ramful, ITC Senior Adviser on Export Quality Management  
Tel: +41 22 730 04 87 - Fax: +41 22 730 05 76 - E-mail: ramful@intracen.org  
 
ITC Export Quality Management  
Website: http://www.intracen.org/eqm  
E-mail: quality@intracen.org  
Twitter: http://www.twitter.com/ITCstandards  
 
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