1. Trade
facilita,on
in
the
context
of
the
SPS
Agreement:
lessons
and
experiences
ADB
-­‐
CAREC
programme
6-­‐8
October
2014
Ulaanbaatar,
Mongolia
Standards
and
Trade
Development
Facility

2. A
global
partnership
in
SPS
technical
coopera3on
• Coordina3on
mechanism
among
providers
of
SPS-­‐related
technical
coopera3on
to
achieve
greater
coherence,
avoid
duplica,on
of
effort
and
enhance
results
• Knowledge
pla:orm
for
the
sharing
of
experiences,
iden,fica,on
and
dissemina,on
of
good
prac3ce,
discussion
of
cross-­‐cu?ng
topics
• Support/funding
for
development
and
implementa3on
of
projects
that
assist
in
complying
with
interna,onal
SPS
requirements;
and
in
gaining/maintaining
market
access

3. SPS
measures
and
Trade
Facilita3on:
context
• Outdated
border
clearance
procedures
and
excessive
red
tape
are
a
greater
barrier
to
trade
than
tariffs
(WB,
2011)
• Performance
gap
between
health/SPS
agencies
and
others
• Low-­‐performing
countries:
far
higher
prevalence
of
physical
inspec3on
• Import
/
export
lead
3mes
twice
as
long
for
top
performers
(generally
high
income)
countries
as
for
poor
performers
(generally
low-­‐income)
0%
5%
10%
15%
20%
25%
30%
2010
2012
2014
Private
sector
%
rate
of
sa3sfac3on
with
selected
border
agencies
(bo[om
quin,le
respondents)*
Customs
Quality
and
Standards
Health/SPS
Source:
World
Bank
Logis3cs
Performance
Index
*include
Afghanistan,
Kyrgyz
Republic,
Turkmenistan,
Uzbekistan
and
Mongolia

4. Right
of
Members
to
protect
human,
animal,
plant
life
or
health
(safeguard
legi,mate
regulatory
objec,ves)
Avoiding
unnecessary
barriers
to
trade
(wai,ng
,mes,
red
tape,
fees,
transparency)
• SPS
measures
(and
their
implementa3on)
may
result
in
trade-­‐
related
transac3on
costs
• However,
these
can
be
jus3fied
by
the
need
to
protect
human,
animal
or
plant
life
or
health
SPS
Agreement
(1995)

5. SPS
Agreement
Main
trade
facilita3on
provisions
• Minimal
trade
restric.on
(Art.
5.6)
– Measures
are
not
more
trade
restric,ve
than
required
to
achieve
the
appropriate
level
of
SPS
protec,on
• Harmoniza.on
&
Equivalence
(Art.3
&
4)
• Transparency
(Art.
7
+
Annex
B)
– Enquiry
points
and
prompt
no,fica,on
• Control,
Inspec.on
&
Approval
Procedures
(Art.
7
+
Annex
C)
– undue
delay
prohibited;
release
,mes
communicated;
fees
limited
to
cost;
appeal
procedures
Protec3on
of
human,
animal
and
plant
life
or
health
• Scien.fic
jus.fica.on
(Art.
2.2
&
5.2)
– Legi,mate
SPS
measures
and
controls
based
on
scien,fic
principles
and
assessment
of
risks
• Provisional
measures
(Art.
5.7)
– SPS
measures
can
be
based
on
available
and
per,nent
informa,on,
where
scien,fic
evidence
is
insufficient

6. STDF
research
in
selected
countries
and
for
selected
products
• Objec3ves:
– Iden3fy
key
needs/good
prac3ces
to
ensure
health
protec3on
while
minimizing
trade
transac3on
costs
– Make
prac3cal
recommenda3ons
to
enhance
technical
assistance
focused
on
SPS
and
trade
facilita3on
• Ques3ons:
– How
are
SPS
measures
applied
in
prac3ce
to
imports,
exports
and
transit
goods?
– Can
SPS-­‐related
trade
costs/delays
be
reduced/avoided
without
compromising
SPS
objec3ves?
How?
• No
direct
link
to
new
WTO
TF
Agreement
–
but
opportunity
to
enhance
dialogue
and
integrate
SPS
components
in
TF
programmes

7. SPS-­‐related
procedural
obstacles
to
trade:
examples
…before
the
border?
…behind
the
border?
• Complex
and
lengthy
procedures
• Excessive
document
requirements
(registra,on,
licences,
fees)
• Formal
/
informal
fees
• Lack
of
informa3on
(transparency)
• No
complaints
/
appeal
procedures
• Arbitrariness
and
unpredictability
Do
the
procedural
obstacles
occur…
• Duplicate
document
requirements
by
impor,ng/expor,ng
countries
• No
dis3nc3on
between
mandatory
and
voluntary
standards
• Overlapping
jurisdic3on
between
government
agencies
• (Mul,ple)
inspec3ons,
tests
and
sampling
• Repeated
document
checks
• Long
wai3ng
3mes
• Lack
of
coordina3on
between
border
agencies
(e.g.
opening
hours)

8. Preliminary
findings:
simple
solu3ons
• Improve
transparency
– Use
online
tools
whenever
prac,cal.
Leaflets
and
brochures
are
also
useful.
• Reduce
possibili3es
for
rent-­‐seeking
– De-­‐couple
revenue-­‐raising
ac.vity
from
regulatory
ac.vity.
Procedural
obstacles
which
are
not
accompanied
by
more
effec%ve
and
efficient
SPS
protec,on
should
not
be
rewarded
with
increased
revenue
• Reduce
document
requirements
– Limit
the
use
of
(i)
company
and
product
registra3on,
(ii)
licences
and
(iii)
import/
export
permits
to
special
groups
of
high
risk
products.
• Coordinate
with
trade
partners
– Apply
equivalence
and
seek
mutual
recogni3on
agreement
to
prevent
duplica3ve
controls
in
expor,ng
and
impor,ng
countries.
Do
not
require
mandatory
export
cer,fica,ons
that
are
not
required
by
the
foreign
buyer.
• Reduce
wai3ng
3mes

9. More
advanced
solu3ons
• Risk-­‐based
SPS
controls
– The
intensity
of
controls
is
adjusted
according
to
the
risk-­‐profile
of
goods/
traders,
but
this
depends
on
consistent
and
reliable
data
collec3on,
sta3s3cal
analysis
and
the
procurement
and
maintenance
of
ICT
hardware.
• Trade
informa3on
desks
– TIDs
act
as
a
liaison
between
the
private
sector
and
the
public
sector,
providing
informa3on
and
facilita3ng
compliance
with
border
controls.
They
can
be
run
by
the
public
sector,
the
private
sector,
or
as
a
PPP.
• Single
windows
– Single
windows
bring
border
agencies
together
in
one
place,
allowing
operators
to
make
one
declara3on
and
one
payment
for
compliance
with
all
border
controls.
ARE
SPS
AUTHORITIES
INVOLVED?

10. • Single
Electronic
Windows
– SEWs
allow
traders
to
submit
all
import,
export,
and
transit
informa3on
simultaneously
– Developing
countries
may
not
have
the
necessary
communica3ons
infrastructure,
technical
capacity
or
human
and
financial
resources
for
effec,ve
implementa,on.
– Premature
introduc3on
can
be
accompanied
by
arbitrary
enforcement
of
parallel
(documents-­‐based)
procedures
that
are
open
to
abuse
by
officials
• One-­‐Stop
Border
Posts
– OSBPs
streamline
clearance
processes
by
bringing
together
equivalent
authori3es
(in
neighbouring
countries)
onto
one
side
of
the
border,
where
controls
on
inbound/outbound
are
carried
out
simultaneously,
saving
,me
and
resources
by
coordina3ng
similar
func3ons
– OSBPs
must
be
preceded
by
procedural
and
process
reforms
Most
Advanced
Solu3ons

11. SPS
performance
EFFECTIVENESS
The
extent
to
which
SPS
measure
or
its
implementa,on
achieves
a
pre-­‐
defined
objec,ve
EFFICIENCY
The
extent
to
which
a
pre-­‐defined
objec,ve
can
be
achieved
at
a
lower
cost
in
terms
of
resources
and
,me
In
order
to
evaluate
the
effec3veness
and
efficiency
of
SPS
measures/
agencies
one
must:
• define
objec.ves
and
develop
SPS
performance
indicators
• carry
out
baseline
studies
of
current
performance
• Monitor
indicators
on
an
ongoing
basis
and
carry
out
ex-­‐post
evalua.on
of
performance
Inputs
(Resources
spent
to
ensure
SPS
compliance)
Ac3vi3es
(Procedures
and
controls
for
SPS
compliance)
Results
(Improvement
in
human,
animal
and
plant
health)

12. Does
the
SPS
measure
achieve
its
health
objec3ve?
Can
the
measure
be
adapted/reinforced
so
as
to
achieve
its
stated
objec3ve?
Can
the
resources
and
3me
needed
to
(i) implement
the
measure
(public
sector);
and
(ii) comply
with
the
measure
(private
sector)
be
reduced
without
compromising
the
objec3ve?
Facilitate
Safe
Trade
Reform
the
SPS
measure
Consider
whether
the
measure
should
be
classified
as
an
unnecessary
barrier
to
trade
SPS
measure
is
op3mal
EFFICIENCY
EFFECTIVENESS
Yes
No
No

13. • What
is
the
status
of
SPS
reform
in
individual
CAREC
countries?
• Are
SPS
agencies
par,cipa,ng
in
Single
Window
/
Coordinated
Border
Management
projects?
• Is
there
scope
for
more
regional
coopera3on?
– Increased
regional
trade
in
goods
subject
to
SPS
controls
– CAREC
SPS
Working
Group?
• Are
CAREC
members
par,cipa,ng
in
WTO
needs
assessments
in
the
context
of
the
new
Trade
Facilita,on
agreement?
Reflec3ons

14. For
more
informa3on
Standards
and
Trade
Development
Facility
World
Trade
Organiza3on
Rue
de
Lausanne
154
CH-­‐1211
Geneva
Switzerland
STDFSecretariat@wto.org
www.standardsfacility.org
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