WORLD TRADE  
ORGANIZATION  G/SPS/W/251 
6 October 2010 
 (10-5050) 
Committee on Sanitary a nd Phytosanitary Measures Original:   English 
  
 
WORK OF THE COMMITTEE ARISIN G FROM THE THIRD REVIEW – 
PROPOSED PRIORITIES 
 
Cooperation between the SPS Committee and th e International Standards-Setting Bodies
 
 
Communication by Japan 
 
 
 The following communication, received on 30 September 2010, is being circulated at the 
request of the Delegation of Japan . 
 
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I. INTRODUCTION 
1. In the Third Review of the Operation and Im plementation of the SPS Agreement, which was 
finalized in May 2010, the issue of the c ooperation between the SPS Committee and the three 
international standard-setting or ganizations (the "three Sisters"), namely, the FAO/WHO Codex 
Alimentarius Commission (Codex), the FAO Intern ational Plant Protection Convention (IPPC), and 
the World Organization for Animal Health (OIE), was underscored.  
2. This issue was first identified in the Second Re view of the Operation and Implementation of 
the SPS Agreement (G/SPS/36, paragraphs 89-91) .  On 26 October 2009, the WTO Secretariat 
organized a workshop on the relationship betw een the SPS Committee and the three Sisters in 
response to the request by the SPS Committee pursuant to the Second Review for further clarification 
and consideration.  
3. In the October 2009 workshop, specific points fo r the enhancement of coordination between 
the SPS Committee and the three Sisters were di scussed and clarified.  The points include: 
• the need to enhance the participation of developing countries in developing 
international standards and other relevant areas; 
• the need to avoid unnecessary duplication of efforts and to identify future 
collaboration in light of limited financial and human resources in the three Sisters, 
also to promote deeper understanding an d increased usefulness for developing 
countries;  and 
• the need to ensure that the standard-setti ng process is in line with the implementation 
of the SPS Agreement and facilitates tr ade in agriculture and food products, 
especially for developing countries. 
4. Noting the above-mentioned points, the workshop made eleven useful recommendations with 
a view to enhancing coordina tion and avoiding duplication of work between the WTO SPS 
Committee and the three Sisters (G/SPS/R/57).  G/SPS/W/251 
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  5. The Third Review explicitly recommends to the SPS Committee that it follow up on any 
recommendations resulting from the October 2009 workshop (G/SPS/53 paragraphs 127-134).  The 
Third Review also encourages Members to provide  information on their experience in coordinating 
their involvement in the work of Codex, IPPC and OIE at the national level.  
II. FOLLOW-UP ON RECOMMENDATIO NS FROM THE OCTOBER 2009 
WORKSHOP 
6. Pursuant to the recommendations put forward by the Third Review, Japan would like to 
propose the following actions as next steps with a view to materializing the recommendations from 
the October 2009 workshop.  
A. I
MPROVEMENT AT THE NATIONAL LEVEL  
Workshop Recommendation 10:  Identify ways to improve coordina tion at the national level of the 
relevant representatives of the three Sisters and SPS representatives. 
The WTO Secretariat is encouraged: 
• to solicit from Members information regarding the current information flow and develop 
understanding of the information-sharing struct ure among relevant representatives to the three 
Sisters and the SPS Committee at the national level; 
• to compile and categorize the information provi ded by Members in order to identify "best 
practices" and possible challenges and difficulties in their coordination at the national level 
for Members (especially developing countries); 
• to provide guidance and/or information on reading of terms and provisions of the SPS 
Agreement in connection with the relationshi p between the SPS Committee and the three 
Sisters, in line with the interpretation by the WTO dispute settlement body.  (This should include improving Members' understanding as well as ensuring the consistency of the 
interpretation of the SPS Agreement.);  and 
• to organize a regional and/or national seminar through collaborative work with other relevant 
WTO fora and/or relevant international orga nizations (e.g. the Institute for Training and 
Technical Cooperation (ITTC) of the WTO, the Standards and Trade Development Facilities 
(STDF) ) in order to provide suitable technical assistance. 
 
Members are encouraged: 
• to provide the SPS Committee with information about the current information flow and the 
information-sharing structure among relevant re presentatives to the three Sisters and the SPS 
Committee at the national level; 
• to share "best practice" experiences with other Members; 
• to identify ways to address challenges and diffi culties for better coordination at the national 
level through a focus group;  and 
• to provide questions on the reading of terms and provisions of the SPS Agreement in 
connection with the relationship between the SPS Committee and the three Sisters aiming to 
facilitate a more structured coor dination at the national level. 
  G/SPS/W/251 
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  B. ENHANCEMENT /IMPROVEMENT AT THE INSTITUTIONAL LEVEL  
Workshop Recommendation 3: Joint work by two or all three Sist ers on cross-cutting issues such as 
certification, inspection, approval procedures and/or risk analysis 
 
Workshop Recommendation 2: Increase the number of joint cap acity-building activities which 
could provide an opportunity to discuss cu rrent work, for example, draft standards 
 
The WTO Secretariat is encouraged: 
 
• to solicit proposals from Members for future wo rk, and identify the areas in cross-cutting 
issues where joint work by two or all three Si sters is sought by Members, with a view to 
avoiding duplication of efforts among th e SPS Committee and the three Sisters and 
facilitating agriculture trade from developing co untries (e.g. generic model health certificate 
of Codex which was completed in 2009, where the spatial layout of the certificate was aligned with that of the OIE Model Veterinary Certificate late in the consultations); 
• to facilitate the discussion on joint capacity-bu ilding activities among the three Sisters and the 
WTO including through the STDF framework. 
 
Members are encouraged: 
• to form a focus group consisting of releva nt representatives of Members to the SPS 
Committee and the three Sisters in order to discuss the identified cross-cutting issues and 
make recommendations to the SPS Committee, with  a view to facilitating the involvement of 
all Members, especially developing countries. 
 
Workshop Recommendation 4:  Hold coordination meetings among the three Sisters and with the 
WTO Secretariat 
Workshop Recommendation 6:  Solicit more information at the st rategic planning phase of the three 
Sisters' work  The WTO Secretariat is encouraged:  
• to jointly report and update details of coordi nation meetings with the three Sisters at the 
beginning of each regular meeting of the SPS Committee, followed by complementary reports 
and comments by the three Sisters for Member s' consideration a nd better understanding; 
• to regularly exchange information and views on mid- to long-term business plans of the three 
Sisters among them in order to ensure effective coordination on long-term projects between the WTO Secretariat and the three Sisters.  This  is recommended with a view to enhancing the 
interest of developing countries in the areas of technical assistance, capacity building, and 
other cross-cutting issues (e.g. recent STDF initia tives that have improved collaboration and 
communication and facilitated better programme management). 
 
 
 
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