WORKSHOP ON transparency

MONDAY, 30 OCTOBER – tuesday, 31 october 2017

PROGRAMME

Note by the Secretariat^[1]

Revision

1.  The Secretariat of the World Trade Organization is organizing a workshop on the transparency provisions of the Agreement on the Application of Sanitary and Phytosanitary Measures (SPS Agreement), to be held in Geneva, Switzerland, on 30-31 October 2017. The workshop will be followed by informal and formal meetings of the SPS Committee, lasting until Friday, 3 November 2017. Representatives of Members, Observers and Observer Organizations are all invited to participate in the transparency workshop as well as the subsequent meetings of the SPS Committee.

2.  Document G/SPS/GEN/997/Rev.7 provides information on the workshop. The WTO, with the financial assistance of the Doha Development Agenda Global Trust Fund (DDAGTF), is sponsoring the participation of approximately 40 government officials from developing country Members and Observers in the workshop. The Secretariat has selected participants to be sponsored among applications from government officials in charge of the implementation of the transparency provisions of the SPS Agreement.

3.  The workshop is intended to be a highly interactive, hands-on event, including training on the use of the improved SPS Information Management System (SPS IMS) and on-line submission system of SPS notifications (SPS NSS), as well as on the ePing SPS/TBT notification alert system. Delegates planning to attend the hands-on training sessions are invited to bring their laptops.

4.  The workshop will also provide a forum for discussion and experience sharing on developments, challenges and practices in the area of SPS transparency. In addition, it will be an occasion to continue the discussions on transparency started as part of the Fourth Review of the implementation of the SPS Agreement.

5.  This revised version of the draft programme takes into account Members' comments received after the July 2017 Committee meeting.