WORLD TRADE  
ORGANIZATION  G/SPS/GEN/1017 
22 April 2010 
 (10-2088) 
Committee on Sanitary a nd Phytosanitary Measures Original:   French 
  
 
PRESENTATION OF THE OFFICIAL MOROCCAN AUTHORITY RESPONSIBLE FOR 
THE IMPLEMENTATION OF THE WTO SPS AGREEMENT AND 
SERVING AS THE ENQUIRY POINT 
 
Communication from Morocco
 
 
  The following communication, received on 16 Ma rch 2010, is being circulated at the request 
of the delegation of Morocco
. 
 
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 1. In the context of the implementation of the Plan Maroc vert  (Green Morocco Plan), a strategy 
launched by His Majesty the King with a view to tu rning the agricultural sector  into a lever for the 
economic and social development of Morocco, the Mi nistry of Agriculture and Marine Fisheries has 
created the National Office for Food Safety (ON SSA), established by Law No. 25-08 promulgated by 
Dahir No. 1-09-20 of 22 Safar 1430 (18 February 2009).  The ONSSA brings together the veterinary 
services which came under the former Livestock Dire ctorate and the services which came under the 
former Plant Protection, Technical Inspectio n and Anti-Fraud Directorate, which until 
31 December 2009 served as the enquiry points for sa nitary and phytosanitary matters respectively. 
2. The ONSSA is a public agency with legal persona lity and financial autonomy.  It is attached 
to the Ministry of Agriculture and Marine Fisheries. 
3. The ONSSA performs functions on behalf of the State relating to the protection of consumer 
health and animal and plant health at every stage of the food chain.  It is the national authority 
responsible for SPS negotiations to f acilitate trade in animals, plants , animal and plant products and 
animal feed. 
4. To that end, the tasks assigned to the former Directorates (the Livestock (Veterinary Services) 
Directorate and the Plant Protection, Technical In spection and Anti-Fraud Directorate) concerning 
sanitary and phytosanitary matters have been tr ansferred to the ONSSA, which is the competent 
authority responsible, in accordance with the laws and regulations in force, for the following tasks: 
(a) Plant and animal health and food safety fro m the raw materials to the end consumer, 
including food intended for use as animal feed; 
(b) protection of the health of the country's pl ant and animal life and control of plant and 
animal products and products of plant and an imal origin, including fishery products, 
during import, export and in the domestic market; 
(c) animal health surveillance and control of their identification and movements; G/SPS/GEN/1017 
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  (d) application of the regulations in force rela ting to veterinary and phytosanitary health 
conditions; 
(e) analysis of the potential consumer health risks posed by food products and animal 
feed as well as the threats posed by pathogen s to the health of plants and animals; 
(f) control of plant and animal diseases, plant and animal products, food products, animal 
feed, veterinary drugs and any other products  intended for use in veterinary medicine 
or surgery; 
(g) granting health permits or approvals, as a pplicable, for establishments in which food 
products and animal feed are produced, made, processed, handled, transported, 
stored, preserved or sold, with the exception of fish markets, fishing vessels, floating 
barges and units engaged in the treatment, production, processing, packaging or 
preservation of marine fishing products and by-products; 
(h) issuing opinions on the sanitary complian ce of the marine fishing establishments 
referred to in the preceding para graph prior to their approval; 
(i) registration of veterinary drugs and veterinary pharmaceutical establishments; 
(j) control of food additives, packaging materi al and products and materials liable to 
come into contact with food products as well as with fertilizers and irrigation water; 
(k) authorization and/or registration of livestock farms; 
(l) approval of pesticides and of establishm ents producing, importing or exporting 
pesticides;  and 
(m) certification of seeds and seedlings and approval of establishments producing, 
importing or exporting seeds and seedlings. 
5. In addition, the ONSSA is responsible for the follow-up to Codex Alimentarius work and, to 
that end, it provides the secretariat for the National Codex Alimentarius Committee created by Decree No. 2-03-140 of 6 Hija 1425 (17 January 2005).  It also serves as the enquiry point for the World 
Trade Organization's Committee on Sanitary and Ph ytosanitary Measures (SPS), is responsible for 
implementing the Agreement on the Application of  Sanitary and Phytosanitary Measures (the 
SPS Agreement) and represents Morocco within the World Organisation for Animal Health (OIE). 
6. It should be noted that the ONSSA compri ses the following decentralized services:  
ten regional directorates, 41 provincial veterinary  services, 43 provincial services for the control of 
plant products and products of plant origin, 43 provincial plant protection services, seven regional 
veterinary analysis and research laboratories, one national laboratory for the control of veterinary 
drugs and five directorates responsible for control and quality at border posts. 
7. The ONSSA is the official Moroccan authority r esponsible for the focal points relating to the 
following international organizations: 
(a) Joint FAO/WHO Food Standards Programme  (Codex Alimentarius Commission):  
Secretariat of the National Codex Alimentarius Committee; 
(b) WTO for the implementation of the SPS Agreement:  enquiry point for 
SPS measures;  G/SPS/GEN/1017 
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  (c) OIE:  National Delegate representing Morocco before the OIE;  and 
(d) International Plant Protection Convention (IPPC):  Moroccan contact point. 
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