Trade  facilita,on  in  the  context  of  the  SPS  Agreement:  lessons  and  experiences  

 ADB  -­‐  CAREC  programme  

6-­‐8  October  2014  Ulaanbaatar,  Mongolia    

   

Standards  and  Trade    Development  Facility  

A  global  partnership  in  SPS  technical  coopera3on  

•  Coordina3on  mechanism  among  providers  of  SPS-­‐related  technical  coopera3on  to  achieve  greater  coherence,  avoid  duplica,on  of  effort  and  enhance  results  

•  Knowledge  pla:orm  for  the  sharing  of  experiences,  iden,fica,on  and  dissemina,on  of  good  prac3ce,  discussion  of  cross-­‐cu?ng  topics  

•  Support/funding  for  development  and  implementa3on  of  projects  that  assist  in  complying  with  interna,onal  SPS  requirements;  and  in  gaining/maintaining  market  access  

SPS  measures  and  Trade  Facilita3on:  context  

•  Outdated  border  clearance  procedures  and  excessive  red  tape  are  a  greater  barrier  to  trade  than  tariffs  (WB,  2011)  

•  Performance  gap  between  health/SPS  agencies  and  others    

•  Low-­‐performing  countries:  far  higher  prevalence  of  physical  inspec3on  

•  Import  /  export  lead  3mes  twice  as  long  for  top  performers  (generally  high  income)  countries  as  for  poor  performers  (generally  low-­‐income)  

0%  

5%  

10%  

15%  

20%  

25%  

30%  

2010   2012   2014  

Private  sector  %  rate  of  sa3sfac3on  with  selected  border  agencies    (bo[om  quin,le  respondents)*  

Customs  

Quality  and  Standards  

Health/SPS  

Source:  World  Bank  Logis3cs  Performance  Index  *include  Afghanistan,  Kyrgyz  Republic,  Turkmenistan,  Uzbekistan  and  

Mongolia  

Right  of  Members  to  protect  human,  animal,  plant  life  or  health  (safeguard  legi,mate  regulatory  objec,ves)  

Avoiding  unnecessary  barriers  to  trade  

(wai,ng  ,mes,  red  tape,  fees,  transparency)  

•  SPS  measures  (and  their  implementa3on)  may  result  in  trade-­‐related  transac3on  costs  

•  However,  these  can  be  jus3fied  by  the  need  to  protect  human,  animal  or  plant  life  or  health  

SPS  Agreement  (1995)  

SPS  Agreement  

Main  trade  facilita3on  provisions  •  Minimal  trade  restric.on  (Art.  5.6)  

–  Measures  are  not  more  trade  restric,ve  than  required  to  achieve  the  appropriate  level  of  SPS  protec,on  

•  Harmoniza.on  &  Equivalence  (Art.3  &  4)  

•  Transparency  (Art.  7  +  Annex  B)  –  Enquiry  points  and  prompt  no,fica,on  

•  Control,  Inspec.on  &  Approval  Procedures  (Art.  7  +  Annex  C)  –  undue  delay  prohibited;  release  ,mes  

communicated;  fees  limited  to  cost;  appeal  procedures  

Protec3on  of  human,  animal  and  plant  life  or  health  

•  Scien.fic  jus.fica.on  (Art.  2.2  &  5.2)  –  Legi,mate  SPS  measures  and  

controls  based  on  scien,fic  principles  and  assessment  of  risks      

•  Provisional  measures  (Art.  5.7)  –  SPS  measures  can  be  based  on  

available  and  per,nent  informa,on,  where  scien,fic  evidence  is  insufficient  

STDF  research  in  selected  countries  and  for  selected  products  

•  Objec3ves:  –  Iden3fy  key  needs/good  prac3ces  to  ensure  health  protec3on  while  

minimizing  trade  transac3on  costs  –  Make  prac3cal  recommenda3ons  to  enhance  technical  assistance    

focused  on  SPS  and  trade  facilita3on  

•  Ques3ons:  –  How  are  SPS  measures  applied  in  prac3ce  to  imports,  exports  and  

transit  goods?    –  Can  SPS-­‐related  trade  costs/delays  be  reduced/avoided  without  

compromising  SPS  objec3ves?  How?  

•  No  direct  link  to  new  WTO  TF  Agreement  –  but  opportunity  to  enhance  dialogue  and  integrate  SPS  components  in  TF  programmes  

       

SPS-­‐related  procedural  obstacles  to  trade:  examples  

…before  the  border?   …behind  the  border?  

•  Complex  and  lengthy  procedures  •  Excessive  document  requirements  

(registra,on,  licences,  fees)  •  Formal  /  informal  fees  

•  Lack  of  informa3on  (transparency)  •  No  complaints  /  appeal  procedures  •  Arbitrariness  and  unpredictability  

Do  the  procedural  obstacles  occur…  

•  Duplicate  document  requirements  by  impor,ng/expor,ng  countries  

•  No  dis3nc3on  between  mandatory  and  voluntary  standards  

•  Overlapping  jurisdic3on  between  government  agencies  

•  (Mul,ple)  inspec3ons,  tests  and  sampling  

•  Repeated  document  checks  •  Long  wai3ng  3mes  •  Lack  of  coordina3on  between  border  

agencies  (e.g.  opening  hours)  

Preliminary  findings:  simple  solu3ons  •  Improve  transparency  

–  Use  online  tools  whenever  prac,cal.  Leaflets  and  brochures  are  also  useful.  

•  Reduce  possibili3es  for  rent-­‐seeking  –  De-­‐couple  revenue-­‐raising  ac.vity  from  regulatory  ac.vity.  Procedural  obstacles  

which  are  not  accompanied  by  more  effec%ve  and  efficient  SPS  protec,on  should  not  be  rewarded  with  increased  revenue  

•  Reduce  document  requirements  –  Limit  the  use  of  (i)  company  and  product  registra3on,  (ii)  licences  and  (iii)  import/

export  permits  to  special  groups  of  high  risk  products.    

•  Coordinate  with  trade  partners  –  Apply  equivalence  and  seek  mutual  recogni3on  agreement  to  prevent  duplica3ve  

controls  in  expor,ng  and  impor,ng  countries.  Do  not  require  mandatory  export  cer,fica,ons  that  are  not  required  by  the  foreign  buyer.    

•  Reduce  wai3ng  3mes  

More  advanced  solu3ons  

•  Risk-­‐based  SPS  controls  –  The  intensity  of  controls  is  adjusted  according  to  the  risk-­‐profile  of  goods/

traders,  but  this  depends  on  consistent  and  reliable  data  collec3on,  sta3s3cal  analysis  and  the  procurement  and  maintenance  of  ICT  hardware.  

•  Trade  informa3on  desks  –  TIDs  act  as  a  liaison  between  the  private  sector  and  the  public  sector,  providing  

informa3on  and  facilita3ng  compliance  with  border  controls.  They  can  be  run  by  the  public  sector,  the  private  sector,  or  as  a  PPP.  

•  Single  windows  –  Single  windows  bring  border  agencies  together  in  one  place,  allowing  operators  to  

make  one  declara3on  and  one  payment  for  compliance  with  all  border  controls.  

ARE  SPS  AUTHORITIES  INVOLVED?  

•  Single  Electronic  Windows  –  SEWs  allow  traders  to  submit  all  import,  export,  and  transit  informa3on  

simultaneously    –  Developing  countries  may  not  have  the  necessary  communica3ons  infrastructure,  

technical  capacity  or  human  and  financial  resources  for  effec,ve  implementa,on.  –  Premature  introduc3on  can  be  accompanied  by  arbitrary  enforcement  of  parallel  

(documents-­‐based)  procedures  that  are  open  to  abuse  by  officials  

•  One-­‐Stop  Border  Posts  –  OSBPs  streamline  clearance  processes  by  bringing  together  equivalent  

authori3es  (in  neighbouring  countries)  onto  one  side  of  the  border,  where  controls  on  inbound/outbound    are  carried  out  simultaneously,  saving  ,me  and  resources  by  coordina3ng  similar  func3ons  

–  OSBPs  must  be  preceded  by  procedural  and  process  reforms    

Most  Advanced  Solu3ons  

SPS  performance  

EFFECTIVENESS  The  extent  to  which  SPS  measure  or  its  implementa,on  achieves  a  pre-­‐

defined  objec,ve  

EFFICIENCY  The  extent  to  which  a  pre-­‐defined  objec,ve  can  be  achieved  at  a  lower  cost  in  terms  of  resources  and  ,me  

In  order  to  evaluate  the  effec3veness  and  efficiency  of  SPS  measures/  agencies  one  must:  •  define  objec.ves  and  develop  SPS  performance  indicators    •  carry  out  baseline  studies  of  current  performance  •  Monitor  indicators  on  an  ongoing  basis  and  carry  out  ex-­‐post  evalua.on  of  

performance  

Inputs  (Resources  spent  to  

ensure  SPS  compliance)  

Ac3vi3es  (Procedures  and  controls  

for  SPS  compliance)  

Results  (Improvement  in  human,  animal  and  plant  health)  

Does  the  SPS  measure  achieve  its  health  

objec3ve?  

Can  the  measure  be  adapted/reinforced  so  as  to  achieve  its  stated  objec3ve?  

Can  the  resources  and  3me  needed  to    (i)  implement  the  measure  (public  

sector);  and    (ii)  comply  with  the  measure  

(private  sector)    be  reduced  without  compromising  the  objec3ve?  

Facilitate  Safe  Trade  

Reform  the  SPS  measure  

Consider  whether  the  measure  should  be  classified  as  an  unnecessary  barrier  

to  trade  SPS  measure  is  op3mal  EFFICIENCY  

EFFECTIVENESS  

Yes  

No  

No  

•  What  is  the  status  of  SPS  reform  in  individual  CAREC  countries?    •  Are  SPS  agencies  par,cipa,ng  in  Single  Window  /  Coordinated  

Border  Management  projects?  •  Is  there  scope  for  more  regional  coopera3on?    

–  Increased  regional  trade  in  goods  subject  to  SPS  controls  –  CAREC  SPS  Working  Group?  

•  Are  CAREC  members  par,cipa,ng  in  WTO  needs  assessments  in  the  context  of  the  new  Trade  Facilita,on  agreement?  

Reflec3ons  

For  more  informa3on  

Standards  and  Trade  Development  Facility    World  Trade  Organiza3on  Rue  de  Lausanne  154  CH-­‐1211  Geneva  Switzerland    STDFSecretariat@wto.org  www.standardsfacility.org    

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