. /.   WORLD TRADE  
ORGANIZATION  G/SPS/W/209 
15 May 2007 
 (07-1993) 
Committee on Sanitary a nd Phytosanitary Measures  
  
 
PROCEDURE TO MONITOR THE PROCESS 
OF INTERNATIONAL HARMONIZATION 
 
Draft Ninth Annual Report
1 
 
 
A. INTRODUCTION  
1. At its meeting of 15-16 October 1997, the SPS Committee adopted a provisional procedure to 
monitor the process of international harmonization a nd the use of international standards, guidelines 
or recommendations, as provided for in Articles 3.5 a nd 12.4 of the SPS Agreement.  This procedure 
was subsequently revised by the Committee in October 2004.2  The Committee decided to extend the 
provisional monitoring procedure for a further two-year period in July 1999, and again in July 2001, and in June 2003 the Committee further extende d the provisional procedure for 36 months.
3  On 28 
June 2006, the Committee agreed to extend the provi sional procedure indefinitely, and to review its 
operation as an integral part of the periodic Revi ew of the Operation and Implementation of the 
Agreement under Article 12.7.4  The next such Review is to be  completed in 2009, and every four 
years subsequently. 
2. The Committee has previously adopted eight an nual reports on the monitoring procedure.5  
These reports summarize several standards-related is sues that the Committee has considered and the 
responses received from the relevant  standard-setting organizations.  
B. NEW ISSUES  
3. Since the adoption of the Eighth Annual Report, [no] new issues have been raised under this 
procedure.  [Update on basis of June 2007 meeting.]  
C. PREVIOUS ISSUES  
4. Since the adoption of the Eighth Annual Report, there has been [no] further discussion on any 
issue previously raised under this procedure.  [Update on basis of June 2007 meeting.]  
D. RESPONSES RECEIVED FROM THE RELEVANT STANDARD -SETTING ORGANIZATIONS  
5. At the meeting of the Committee in Oct ober 2006, the representative of the Codex 
Alimentarius reminded the Committee of the decision by the Codex Alimentarius Commission to abolish the procedure regarding the notificati on of acceptance by Members on the use of Codex 
                                                     
 
1 This document has been prepared under the Secret ariat's own responsibility and is without prejudice 
to the positions of Members or to their rights or obligations under the WTO. 
2 G/SPS/11/Rev.1. 
3 G/SPS/14, G/SPS/17 and G/SPS/25. 
4 G/SPS/40. 
5 These were circulated as G/SPS/13, G/SPS/16, G/SPS/18, G/SPS/21, G/SPS/28 , G/SPS/31, G/SPS/37 
and G/SPS/42.  G/SPS/W/209 
Page 2  
 
  standards.  The main reasons for the abolition were  that it created a dichotomy between those Codex 
standards submitted for acceptance by Codex members and  those that were not actually used 
substantively by Codex members.  There had been  ongoing discussion in the Codex as to which new 
procedure or measures or instruments could be intr oduced to address the wish of Codex members to 
monitor the use of Codex standards.  One proposal to  this effect had been that the regional Codex 
coordinating committees have a standing agenda ite m regarding the use of Codex standards and 
related texts at the national and regional level.  Th e Codex secretariat had sent a circular letter to all 
Codex members that contained a questionnaire related to:  (1) the use of Codex standards and related 
texts at the national and regional level;  (2) non-u se of Codex standards and related texts;  (3) any 
difficulties encountered by Codex members in using C odex standards and related texts;  (4) relevance 
of Codex standards as a basis for harmonization;  an d (5) any other health and trade problems related 
to standardization (G/SPS/GEN/727).   
[Update on the basis of June 2007 meeting.] 
  
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