FIFTH REVIEW OF THE OPERATION AND IMPLEMENTATION
OF THE AGREEMENT
ON THE APPLICATION OF SANITARY AND PHYTOSANITARY MEASURES
ROLE OF INTERNATIONAL ORGANIZATIONS IN ADDRESSING SPS
ISSUES
(SPECIFIC TRADE CONCERNS)
Submission
from South Africa
The following communication,
received on 3 September 2018, is being circulated at the request of the
Delegation of South Africa.
_______________
1. Sanitary and Phytosanitary (SPS) measures, by their very nature, may
result in restrictions on trade. All governments accept the fact that some
trade restrictions may be necessary to ensure food safety and animal and plant
health protection.
2. The SPS Committee meetings spend much time on the agenda item
regarding specific trade concerns (STCs), wherein WTO Members raise STCs
regarding SPS measures imposed by trade partners.
3. Between the years 2010 and 2017, 149 STCs have been raised, out of
which 124 have not been resolved, 19 have been resolved, while six have been
partially resolved. Progress with regard to the resolution of SPS issues (STCs)
raised during the SPS Committee meetings thus appears to be slow.
4. South Africa considers that the international organizations (Codex
Alimentarius Commission, the World Organization for Animal Health, and the
International Plant Protection Convention) generally referred to as the three
sisters, which develop international SPS standards, guidelines and
recommendations, can play a crucial role in providing advice to the SPS
Committee on STCs that are raised during the meetings.