WORLD TRADE  
ORGANIZATION  G/SPS/GEN/812 
22 November 2007 
 (07-5142) 
Committee on Sanitary a nd Phytosanitary Measures  
  
 
BACKGROUND DOCUMENT FROM THE STANDARDS AND TRADE  
DEVELOPMENT FACILITY FOR THE GLOBAL REVIEW OF AID FOR TRADE
1 
 
Note by the Secretariat2 
 
 
I. BACKGROUND 
1. The Standards and Trade Development Facility  (STDF) is a joint initiative of five 
organizations with specific expertise in the domai n of sanitary and phytosanitary (SPS) measures and 
trade:  the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), World Organization for Animal Health (OIE), 
World Bank, World Health Organization (WHO) a nd the World Trade Organization (WTO).  Other 
organizations with experience in SPS-related techni cal co-operation in this area such as the Inter-
American Institute for Co-operation on Agriculture  (IICA), the International Trade Centre (ITC), the 
United Nations Conference on Trade and Developmen t (UNCTAD) and the United Nations Industrial 
Development Organization (UNIDO) also participate in the work of the STDF.  The goals of the 
STDF are: 
• to assist developing countries enhance their expertise and capacity to analyze and to 
implement international sanitary and phytosan itary (SPS) standards, so improving their 
human, animal and plant health situation, and t hus ability to gain and maintain market access; 
and 
• to act as a vehicle for co-ordination among tec hnical co-operation providers, the mobilization 
of funds, the exchange of experience and the di ssemination of best practice in relation to the 
provision and receipt of SPS-related technical co-operation. 
2. As part of its co-ordination mandate, the STD F held a series of workshops as part of the 
Regional Reviews of Aid for Trade in September 2007.  These workshops were part of a larger 
project aiming to strengthen the link between the supply and receipt of SPS-related technical 
co-operation in three pilot regions: Central America3, the East African Community (EAC)4 and a 
sub-group of ASEAN countries.5  The three STDF workshops were held: 
• in Lima, Peru on 12 September (in collabora tion with the Inter-American Development 
Bank); 
                                                      
1 Also circulated as an internal document of the Standards and Trade Development Facility as 
 STDF 203. 
2 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. 
3 Participating countries included Costa Rica, El  Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, Nicaragua and 
Panama. 
4 Participating countries included Kenya, Tanzania and Uganda .  Burundi and Rw anda became full 
EAC Members as of 1 July 2007.  Research was concentrated on Kenya, Tanzania and Uganda. 
5 Participating countries included Cambodia, Lao People’s Democratic Republic and Vietnam. 
 G/SPS/GEN/812 
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  • in Manila, the Philippines on 18 September (in collaboration with the Asian Development 
Bank); and 
• in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania on 30 September (i n collaboration with the African Development 
Bank). 
3. Each workshop was based around an overview of  existing SPS capacity evaluations and an 
inventory of SPS-related technical co-operation prov ided to each region in the period 2001-2006.  At 
each workshop, participants were invited to give pr eliminary reactions to the reports and to discuss 
how the demand and supply of SPS-related t echnical co-operation may be matched.   
4. This report gives an overview of the issues emer ging from the first stage of this research.   
II. EVALUATIONS OF SPS-RELATED TECHNICAL CO-OPERATION NEEDS 
5. In each of the three pilot regions, demand fo r SPS-related technical co-operation was based 
on a synthesis of existing evaluations.  No new capac ity evaluation studies were commissioned.  From 
the research in the three regions, it is clear that a va riety of different evaluati ons have been undertaken 
in each region. 
6. In Central America, 11 separate evaluations studies carried out in the period 2001-2006 were 
identified.  These evaluations include specific analy ses of the plant health sector using the IPPC's 
Phytosanitary Capacity Evaluation (PCE) tool and analysis of the food safety area by the 
Pan-American Institute for Food Protection and Zoonoses and by the Inter-American Institute for 
Co-operation on Agriculture (IICA).  IICA has used its Performance Vision Strategy (PVS) tool also to carry out sector-specific and general analyses of SPS infrastructure.  The OIE has adapted and 
applied the PVS tool in the animal health sector .  The Inter-American Development Bank has carried 
out research on SPS and TBT in various countries in th e region.  At a regional level, two comparative 
analyses of the SPS situation across all of Central America were undertaken in preparation for the 
Central America Free Trade Agreement (CAFTA) negotiations.
6  There is also a limited amount of 
research work on "costs of SPS compliance" whic h has been carried out in the region.   
7. In East Africa, a total of 10 capacity evaluati ons were identified in a ddition to a growing body 
of studies on "costs of compliance" with SPS measu res.  In 2005 and 2006, the joint WHO/FAO tool 
on "guidelines to assess capacity bu ilding needs to strengthen national food control" were applied in 
Kenya, Tanzania and Uganda.  The resultant eval uations were developed in to national strategies on 
food safety.  The PCE was applied in all three count ries and the OIE PVS tool was applied in Kenya.  
The OIE evaluation was preceded by an evaluation of  animal health controls under the Pan African 
Control of Epizootics project funded by the EC.  UNIDO also undertook an analysis of Standards Metrology, Testing and Quality (SMTQ) for the Ea st African region focusing on proof of compliance 
with international market requirements in the agri-food sector.  Finally, under the Integrated 
Framework (IF), the World Bank also carried out b ackground studies on SPS in Tanzania and Uganda 
as part of the Diagnostic Trade Integration Studies.   The World Bank also conducted similar research 
in Kenya – although not part of the IF.  
8. In Cambodia, Lao PDR and Viet Nam a total of 8 national assessments of SPS capacity 
evaluation and 4 evaluations carried out at a re gional level were identified.  Of the national 
evaluations, New Zealand Aid (NZAID) has carried out  evaluations of food safety and plant health 
and UNIDO national assessments of Standards Metrology, Testing and Quality (SMTQ) 
                                                     
 
6 In his analysis, the consultant concentrated much of his overview on the over-arching CAFTA 
evaluations.  This led to some criticism from participants at the Lima workshop that the situation had changed 
since the evaluations were conducted in 2003.    G/SPS/GEN/812 
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  infrastructure.  The European Commission (EC) h as commissioned assessments of the legal structures 
of SPS compliance as part of its MUTRAP project.  In both Lao PDR and Viet Nam, the World Bank 
has developed SPS action plans for capacity buildi ng.  In Lao PDR and Cambodia, the Diagnostic 
Trade Integration Studies carried out by the Integrat ed Framework also contained evaluations of SPS 
capacity.  At a regional level, the ASEAN-Australia Development Co-operation Program has carried 
out evaluations of animal health and biosecu rity, ASEAN standards and conformity assessment 
systems.  The Asian Development Bank has also looke d at SPS and trade facilitation.  The consultant 
found only a limited amount of research work on "costs of SPS compliance" which has been carried out in the region. 
9. From the preceding overview, it is clear that a considerable body of research work on SPS 
capacity evaluations already exists in all three re gions.  Overall, the sector-specific evaluations are 
best developed in the plant health and food saf ety sectors.  The OIE's capacity evaluation tool, 
adapted from the IICA PVS, is currently being rolled out  globally.  Of the three tools, two (the IPPC 
and OIE tools) have been designed as self-evaluatio n exercises, the results of which should remain 
confidential unless otherwise directed by the government  concerned.  In contrast, the results of the 
joint FAO/WHO food safety tool have been published a nd, in East Africa, used as the basis on which 
to develop national food safety strategies.  Other capacity evaluations studies, notably, the World Bank's SPS action plans, UNIDO's SMTQ analyses and the Integrated Framework analyses are all in the public domain. 
10. Regional approaches to SPS capacity evaluation app ear best developed in the Asian region.  
The main driving force behind these regional evalua tions has been regional integration through the 
Association of South East Asian Nations (ASEAN) , and in particular achievement of the ASEAN 
Free Trade Area.  The appearance of highly pathogen ic avian influenza has given further impetus to 
this process.   
11. Similar regional integration processes are opera ting in the other two regions.  In Central 
America, the CAFTA process has prompted regional evaluations of SPS capacity.  In East Africa, 
regional integration processes are on-going through the East African Community (EAC) and the 
Common Market for East and Southern Africa (COMESA).  Another important driver of SPS capacity evaluation at a regional level in A frica is the on-going negotiation of the Economic 
Partnership Agreements with the EC and the pr ovision of assistance by the EC through programmes 
aimed at regional groups, e.g. Africa-wide or all Africa, Caribbean Pacific (ACP). 
12. A single common analysis of SPS-related tec hnical co-operation needs shared between 
donors, international organizations and beneficiaries is missing.  On e clear point emerging from the 
overview of capacity evaluation tools is that greater possibilities exist both for common analysis of  capacity evaluations between donors, regional and inte rnational organizations with expertise in the 
SPS area and also the sharing of existing evaluations.
7  In the absence of greater co-ordination, there 
is  considerable scope for duplication of effort.   
13. A further difficulty identified during the regi onal consultations meetings in September 2007 
was that while capacity evaluations may have "owner ship" by national authoriti es at a technical level, 
they lack ownership at a political level.  This l ack of ownership may also be true among the broader 
SPS constituency if the evaluation is specific e.g. in  the animal health sector .  In as much as political 
ownership relates directly to the allocation of b udgetary resources to the SPS area, this lack of 
ownership at a political level can cause difficulties w ith respect to the translation of needs into the 
allocation of resources to SPS functions and the continuation of funding for initiatives when donor 
funding has ceased. 
                                                      
7 Over-arching SPS action plans exist in a few cases , for example, the World Bank's SPS action plans 
developed for Lao PDR and Viet Nam or IICA's PVS strategies. G/SPS/GEN/812 
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  14. Specific conclusions as to SPS needs at a national and regional level can be found in the work 
of the three consultants, the reports of each workshop and the su mmary conclusions and 
recommendations arising.  All relevant docum entation can be found on the STDF website at 
www.standardsfacility.org
.  
III. INVENTORIES OF SPS- RELATED TECHNICAL CO-OPERATION  
15. In each of the three pilot regions, the suppl y of SPS-related technical co-operation was 
surveyed.  The surveys t ook the form of inventories compiled on the basis of data harvested from the 
WTO/OECD Trade Capacity Building Database  (TCBDB), document G/SPS/GEN/726, information 
from websites and databases of international and regi onal organizations as well as direct requests for 
information.   
16. A number of obstacles were encountered in the pr eparation of the inventories.  The starting 
point for the analysis was the TCBDB.  However, the SPS information reproduced in this database is 
only partial and had to be suppl emented from other sources.  For example, the total value of 
SPS-related assistance reported world-wide in  the TCBDB was US$280 million for the period 2001-
2006.  This figure is lower than the value of assi stance for which the East African region alone was 
eligible to apply for over the same period wh ich totalled an estimated US$419 million.   
17. A further problem encountered by the consultant s was the low response rate to requests for 
information from donors.  In the case of Central Amer ica, the low response rate hampered the work of 
the consultants and follow-up action is needed to comple te the inventory.  In particular, the consultant 
for Central America was unable to attach any monetary  value to the assistance offered to that region 
in the period 2001-2006.  Response rates by donors were highest for activities in Cambodia, Lao PDR 
and Viet Nam, but still one-third of the enquiries went unanswered.   
18. The inventory for Central America identified 76 9 training activities carried out in the period 
2002-2006.  Training activities aimed at general SPS issues and food safety accounted for the highest proportion at 64 per cent of the total.  In cont rast, animal health activities accounted for only 103 
entries or 15 per cent of the total.  Among donors, the United States (US) was the largest supplier of 
technical assistance, accounting for 342 activities or 50 pe r cent of the total.  The next largest bilateral 
donor was Canada with some 20 activities over the survey  period or 3 per cent of the total.  Of the 
three inventories, the one for Central America wa s the weakest.  One of the conclusions from the 
Lima workshop was the need to update  and improve this information.   
19. According to the inventory for East Africa, an estimated total of US$36 million was provided 
in direct SPS-related assistance to Kenya, Tanzan ia and Uganda for SPS-related assistance in the 
period 2001-2006.  In addition to dir ect assistance, Kenya, Tanzania and Uganda were also eligible to 
benefit from SPS-related assistance projects offered at a supranational  level.  In value terms, 
supranational  SPS-related assistance can be valued at US $383 million for the period 2001-2006.  It is 
however, impossible to estimate the portion of this total which may have benefited Kenya, Tanzania 
and Uganda. 
20. The high value of supranational  assistance underlines the importan ce of assistance offered by 
the EC through various ACP-specific or Africa-spe cific projects.  Of the total of US$383 million, 
assistance from the EC accounts for US$284 million or 74  per cent of the total.  Taken together, the 
EC and its Member States provided 97 per cent of supranational  SPS-related assistance by value.  For 
direct assistance to Kenya, Tanzania and Uganda, the EC and its Member States were also the most 
important assistance providers acc ounting for 95 per cent of all.  
21. Donor operations were also directed at specific areas.  At supranational  level the EC was 
most active in the animal health  area.  A total of US$121 million h as been offered by the EC on  G/SPS/GEN/812 
 Page 5 
 
 
  animal health programmes.  While animal health projects accounted for 39 per cent of total 
supranational  assistance by value, only 9 per cent of direct  assistance to Kenya, Tanzania and Uganda 
was directed at the animal health sector.  
22. According to the inventory of technical assistance for Cambodia, Lao PDR and Viet Nam a 
total of US$315 million was provided in assistance th rough 152 projects in the period 2001-2006.  Of 
this total, Vietnam was the largest  recipient of funds by value with US$155 million or 49 per cent of 
the total for the entire period.  Cambodia and Lao PDR received 5 per cent and 6 per cent respectively 
of the assistance by value.  40 per cent by valu e of the assistance given was provided through multi-
country projects.  One project offered by Denmark to  the fisheries sector in  Viet Nam accounted for 
27 per cent of the assistance provided to the en tire region as a whole in the survey period.  
23. The high number of multi-country projects reflects the strength of regional institutions, 
notably ASEAN, the Asia-Pacific Economic Coopera tion (APEC), and the Asian Development Bank 
(ADB).  There is South-South technical coopera tion among the developing countries in the region as 
exemplified by the Ayeyawaddy-Chao Phraya-M ekong Economic Cooperation Strategy (ACMECS) 
program of Thailand and the Greater Mekong Sub-region (GMS) initiative of the ADB.  
24. Australia, Canada, the EC and its member states, Japan and Norway were the most important 
bilateral donors by value to the CLV countries.  In terms of the number of projects, the US was the second largest supplier of technical co-operation.  Donor operations were also directed at specific 
areas.  Australia was most active in the plant health  sector, while Japan and the US primarily directed 
assistance to food safety.  The tendency to provide multi-country assistance was also reflected in the operations of bilateral donors.   
25. In all three regions, the majority of SPS assistance offered was “soft” infrastructure 
development projects concerned with, for example, updating legal frameworks or providing technical 
skills for inspection, diagnosis and surveillance fo r food safety, plant and animal health.  Soft 
infrastructure projects accounted for 72 per cent of entries in Central America and 76 per cent of the 
total number of projects for Cambodia, Lao PDR and Viet Nam.  In East Africa, the consultant 
estimated the figure higher: at approximately 90 per cent of the total. 
26. From the preceding analysis, it is clear that ther e is considerable variation in the provision of 
assistance in the SPS area.  That variation exists not  just between different regions, but also between 
countries within the same region and within countries between different sectors.  Noteworthy is the 
difference in the provision of assistance at national and regional level between different regions – with 
the overwhelming majority of assistance being channelled at supranational  level in the East African 
region, but relatively little assistan ce tracked at national level.   
27. These preliminary conclusions would appear to suggest that assistance could be more evenly 
provided within the pilot regions surveyed.  It may also suggest that capacity building is being undertaken on ad hoc basis with specific donors looki ng at specific interventions, rather than as part 
of an over-arching development pl an which includes a clear vision of national SPS strategy.  One 
factor which may give some credence to this c onclusion is that at all three regional workshops a 
strong conclusion which emerged related to the diffic ulty of translating the need for strengthening 
SPS functions into concrete actions which will have a tangible impact, in particular in the area of 
market access.   
28. This preliminary conclusion on the need for greater co-ordination between donor activities is 
further underlined when one consid ers that the overall level of assist ance appears to be on the rise in G/SPS/GEN/812 
Page 6  
 
  both the East Asian and African regions.
8   In 2001, a total of 17 projects were provided to Cambodia, 
Lao PDR and Viet Nam, rising to 25 in 2004 and 40  in 2006.  The main reason for the increase in 
assistance between 2004 and 2006 has been the fight against highly pathogen ic avian influenza 
(HPAI).  A total of 17 projects on HPAI started in 2006.   
29. In 2001, Kenya, Tanzania and Uganda receive d a total of approximately US$1.6 million in 
direct SPS-related assistance.  By 2005, this figure had risen to US$10 million.  The same pattern has 
also been repeated for supranational  assistance.  In 2001, the value of assistance was US$28.5 
million.  By 2005, this figure had risen to US $86 million. The main reason for the growth in 
assistance over the period has been increasing attention on the part of donors to SPS issues.  Of particular importance has been the provision by the EC of a number of very large thematic projects 
e.g. on pesticides, fisheries and animal health. This trend shows signs of continuing in the East 
African region.  A total of US$7.6 million has al ready been committed in SPS-related technical 
assistance to Kenya, Tanzania and Uganda.  At a supranational level, a total of US$141 million can 
already be identified for the period 2007-2010. 
30. This trend towards greater donor funding in the SPS area, and in the trade area more 
generally, was confirmed during the regional review of Aid for Trade.  Important new commitments 
in the Aid for Trade area are coming on-stream and w ithin aid budgets the area of standards is being 
given further attention.  Against this backgroun d, mechanisms to improve co-ordination among 
assistance providers and beneficiaries may take on greater importance.   
IV. NEXT STEPS 
31. The initial stage of research has examined ex isting studies on SPS-related technical assistance 
needs and the supply of co-operation in three pilot regions over the period 2001-2006.  This 
preliminary work has built a good foundation for furt her work with the aim of delivering on each of 
the regions' prioritized needs through an enhan ced  overall co-ordination of assistance between 
beneficiaries and donors, as well as among donors themselves.   
32. On the demand side of the SPS-related capacity building equation, the objective of the STDF 
research work will be to consolidate the vari ous SPS capacity evaluations which have been 
undertaken in each region into a single overview  fro m which to identify a list of priority needs to be 
addressed in each region. 
33. On the supply side, the aim of the next stage of  this STDF is to define, both at a national and 
regional level, how to meet the needs identified in  each region through existing, planned or future 
SPS-related initiatives.  The prioritization of needs should assist donors in focusing on how to 
integrate needs into their programming cycles:  short, medium and long-term. 
34. The third element to the follow-on work will be  to identify elements of good practice which 
can be integrated into future technical co-opera tion programmes. For this purpose, field surveys will 
be conducted in each region on projects identifie d by donors as good practice in the area of 
SPS-related technical co-operation. 
35. Overall, the purpose of this next stage of th e STDF research will be to catalyze Aid for Trade 
in the area of SPS-related technical assistance in  the three pilot regions.  Stage 1 research has 
highlighted that SPS-related technical assistance has been tackled in an ad hoc fashion with little 
overall coordination between donors ov er how to address beneficiary needs.  One aim of the regional 
consultations will be to bring beneficiaries a nd assistance providers into a dialogue, building on 
                                                     
 
8 In the absence of data for th e Central American region on the value of assistance offered, no 
conclusion could be drawn on the evolution of assistance over time.  G/SPS/GEN/812 
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  existing mechanisms where they exist, with the aim of catalysing assistance around priority area 
identified by beneficiaries.  The response to th ese needs may also include the commission of future 
project preparation grants or projects through the STDF.  As such, this work aims at a practical 
outcome: the mobilization of resources to address SPS needs.  At an issue-specific level, the STDF 
thus aims to complement the la rger Aid for Trade initiative. 
__________