SANITARY & PHYTOSANITARY MEASURES: THEMATIC SESSION

SPS Committee Thematic Session on Pest-Free Areas

The SPS Committee agreed, at its November 2017 meeting, to hold a thematic session on pest-free areas immediately preceding its March 2018 meeting, based on a proposal submitted by the United States (G/SPS/GEN/1593/Rev.1). The session will provide an opportunity for WTO Members to increase their awareness of IPPC standards on pest-free areas, and share experiences about the challenges, as well as the benefits, of implementing pest-free areas in practice. This, in turn, should contribute to building confidence among trading partners when recognizing or seeking recognition of their pest-free areas. The session will focus on plant pests and allow for the discussion of the implementation of the pest-free area concept from the perspective of an importing, as well as an exporting party.

The report of the Thematic Session is contained in document G/SPS/R/90.

Programme (in PDF format)

Chairperson: Mr Marcial Espinola

1. International Rules and Guidelines

Provisions of the SPS Agreement on regionalization (Article 6) and relevant guidelines (G/SPS/48)
Speaker: Ms Anneke Hamilton, WTO Secretariat
Presentation

Relevant jurisprudence on regionalization (Article 6)
Speaker: Mr Miguel Villamizar and Mr Ahsan Ali, WTO Secretariat
Presentation

IPPC standards on pest-free areas
Speaker: Ms Ketevan Lomsadze, Implementation Facilitation Officer, International Plant Protection Convention (IPPC)
Presentation

Followed by Q&A session

 

2. Sharing of Regional, International and National Experiences

Part 1: Experiences from Regional and International Organizations

Speakers:

  • Mr Carlos Lobos, Agricultural Engineer, National Supervisor of the Fruit Fly Programme, Agricultural and Livestock Service (SAG), Chile, Southern Cone Plant Health Committee (COSAVE)
    Presentation
    Importance of the use of the concept of pest-free areas for COSAVE
  • Dr Walther R. Enkerlin, Entomologist, Insect Pest Control Section, Joint FAO/IAEA Division, International Atomic Energy Agency
    Presentation
    Sterile insect technologies

Followed by Q&A session

 

Part 2: Members' Experiences

Speakers:

  • Mr Gonzalo Ríos, Head, International Negotiations Department, Agricultural and Livestock Service (SAG), Ministry of Agriculture, Chile
    Presentation
    Chile's experience in applying the regionalization principle in the plant health area
  • Mr Harry Arijs, Deputy Head of Unit G1 – Plant Health, Directorate General for Health and Food Safety, European Commission, European Union
    Presentation
    Regionalization for plant health within the EU
  • Mr Carlos Soto Litera, Executive Director, MOSCAMED Programme, Guatemala
    Presentation
    MOSCAMED programme and Pest-Free Areas
  • Mr Tang-Kai Wang, Specialist, Bureau of Animal and Plant Health Inspection and Quarantine, Chinese Taipei
    Presentation
    Experiences in establishing pest-free status
  • Mr Emigdio Gómez, Director, Plant Health Department, Ministry of Agriculture, Dominican Republic
    Presentation
    Dominican Republic: Experiences in the eradication of an outbreak of Mediterranean fruit fly and declaration of a pest-free area

Followed by Q&A session

 

3. General Discussion