ANNUAL REPORT ON
THE IMPLEMENTATION OF ARTICLE 6
OF THE AGREEMENT ON THE APPLICATION OF SANITARY
AND PHYTOSANITARY MEASURES
NOTE by the Secretariat[1]
Introduction
Article 6
of the SPS Agreement requires that measures take into account pest- or
disease-free areas or areas of low pest or disease prevalence. This concept is
frequently referred to as "regionalization". At the 2-3 April 2008
meeting, the Committee on Sanitary and Phytosanitary Measures (the SPS Committee)
adopted guidelines to further the practical implementation of Article 6.[2]
These guidelines are intended to provide assistance to Members in the
implementation of Article 6 by improving transparency, exchange of
information, predictability, confidence and credibility between importing and
exporting Members. These guidelines are to be reviewed periodically and revised
as necessary by the Committee in light of experience gained through the
implementation of the Agreement and the use of these guidelines themselves.
The
guidelines require the Secretariat to prepare an annual report to the Committee
on implementation of Article 6 based on the information provided by
Members concerning:
1. requests
for recognition of pest- or disease-free areas or areas of low pest or disease
prevalence;
2. determinations on whether to recognize a pest- or disease-free area or area of low
pest or disease prevalence; and/or
3. Members'
experiences in the implementation of Article 6 and the provision of
relevant background information by Members on their decisions to other
interested Members.
This
report covers the period from 1 April 2024 until 31 March 2025, based on
information provided by Members through notifications and information presented
during SPS Committee meetings. This information was frequently
provided under the agenda item "Pest‑ and Disease‑Free Areas (Regionalization)".
Relevant information provided under other agenda items is also included in the
report. Information on notifications related to Article 6 is contained in section 4; and section 5 lists the relevant
specific trade concerns. Previous reports are available _here.
Members have frequently discussed the topic
of regionalization. In the context
of the Work Programme launched by the MC12 SPS Declaration "Responding to
Modern Challenges"[3],
discussions took place in Thematic Group 3. A factual summary of the Work Programme
is available in document _G/SPS/70.
In June 2024, the Committee adopted a report on the MC12 SPS Declaration Work
Programme containing findings and recommendations, that was circulated in
document _G/SPS/72.
Finally,
in the context of the Sixth Review, several Members submitted proposals for
discussions on regionalization.[4]
The Chairperson's report on the discussions held by Members in the informal
meetings on the proposal submitted is contained in document _JOB/SPS/36/Rev.4.
As a result of those discussions, the Committee decided to hold a thematic
session on innovative regulatory approaches to facilitate safe trade, that took
place in March 2025, which also addressed regionalization.[5]
As
part of the discussions on the procedure for the Sixth Review, at the informal November
2023 Committee meeting the Secretariat indicated that the Committee would need to
review the existing Committee decisions and procedures, such as the procedure
to monitor the process of international harmonization, regionalization, etc.
The Secretariat prepared a list of these decisions, circulated as _RD/SPS/245. To date
no Member has suggested a need to modify the Guidelines on regionalization.
The Report of the Sixth Review[6],
adopted in March 2025, includes the following recommendations on
regionalization:
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