Standards issues in trade

ASI managed the technical and logistical aspects of a DFID Ministerial Round Table to discuss the impact of sanitary and phyto-sanitary (SPS) measures and technical barriers to trade on exports from developing countries. The Round Table was set in the context of increasing use of technical standards and SPS measures by developed countries as non-tariff trade barriers in an era of tariff reform and trade liberalisation within the WTO framework. TThe ASI team also made a significant technical input to the presentations and co-authored a background paper on the potential for regional co-operation in addressing SPS requirements. The Round Table was hosted and chaired by Clare Short, then UK Secretary of State for International Development. It was attended by invited ministers and senior officials from over 15 developing countries, the UK Government and the European Commission, the World Bank, civil society and academia.