SPS mentoring system

Overview

The mentoring system was established following the Report of the Sixth Review of the Operation and Implementation of the SPS Agreement, adopted in March 2025 (G/SPS/74 and G/SPS/74/Add.1), to assist developing and LDC members, including with respect to transparency and their timely engagement on SPS matters. Mentoring objectives stem from an SPS-related issue, such as transparency, participation in the SPS Committee, operational implementation of a specific SPS issue or SPS Agreement provision, leadership and coordination on SPS matters, etc.

Mentoring is an informal, ad hoc supportive relationship between individuals (government officials) for knowledge-sharing, peer learning and engagement on SPS-related issues, including in the context of South-South cooperation. Mentoring may involve a one-on-one relationship between peers, several mentees and/or several mentors.

Mentoring does not imply any financial commitment (unless otherwise agreed).

The mentoring system was first launched as a pilot in 2025-2026 focusing on a limited number of relationships. Details on the pilot are available in the report G/SPS/GEN/2423

In June 2026, the SPS Committee extended the mentoring system for two years, with a mid-term review in 2027.

Selected mentees for the 2026 call

Mentee	Mentor	Topic
Bangladesh - Bangladesh Food Safety Authority (BFSA)		Coordination on SPS matters (English)
Indonesia - Indonesian Quarantine Authority (IQA)		Operational implementation of a specific SPS issue or WTO SPS Agreement provision (English)
Nigeria - National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC) and Food Safety		Participation in the WTO SPS Committee (English)
Sudan - Sudanese Standards and Metrology Organization (SSMO)		Operational implementation of a specific SPS issue or WTO SPS Agreement provision (English)
Togo - Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries, Animal Resources, and Food Sovereignty		Participation in the WTO SPS Committee (French)
Zambia - Department of Plant Quarantine and Phytosanitary Service/National Plant Protection Organisation of Zambia		Transparency (English)

The full list of participants in the mentoring SPS mentoring system is available here.

Timeline

Date	Step	Documents
March 2025	Committee recommendation to explore a mentoring system	Sixth Review Report (G/SPS/74, para. 2.24)
June 2026	Committee decision to extend the mentoring system	Summary report of the June 2026 (G/SPS/R/121)
Q3 2026	Call for mentees (applications by Friday, 25 September 2026)
Q4 2026	Selection of mentees and information to Members Call for mentors (by emailing [email protected]) and mentor/mentee matching
November 2026	Intermediate reporting to Committee	Summary report of the November meeting
Q1 2027 onwards	Mentoring (duration to be decided by each mentoring pair)
March 2027	Intermediate reporting to Committee	Summary report of the March meeting
June 2027	Intermediate reporting to Committee Mid-term review by the SPS Committee	Summary report of the June meeting
Q3 2027	Call for mentees
Q4 2027	Selection of mentees and information to Members Call for mentors (by emailing [email protected]) and mentor/mentee matching
November 2027	Intermediate reporting to Committee	Summary report of the November meeting
Q1 2028 onwards	Mentoring (duration to be decided by each mentoring pair)
March 2028	Intermediate reporting to Committee	Summary report of the March meeting
March 2028 onwards	Mentoring phase (details to be agreed upon by mentees and mentors)
June 2028	Intermediate reporting to Committee	Summary report of the June meeting
November 2028	The SPS Committee to decide on the extension of the initiative	Summary report of the November meeting