Laboratory infrastructure

Hosted by the STDF, on 15-17 November 2007, UNIDO and the World Bank held a workshop to examine issues related to investment in SPS laboratory infrastructure. The immediate purpose of the workshop was to provide input for the finalization of a guide, jointly developed by the World Bank and UNIDO, to assist in assessing and making investment decisions in SPS laboratory infrastructure.

The meeting addressed several key topics with respect to the role of laboratories providing food safety and agricultural health services, notably:

  • The core functions of laboratories;
  • The optimal balance between the public and private provision of laboratory services and the appropriate division of labour between the two;
  • The economics of building new laboratory capacity versus the re-organization of existing services and how to ensure the sustainability of both;
  • The effect of the rise of private standards schemes on the demand for, and organization of, laboratory services in developing countries; and
  • Capacity-building challenges associated with diagnostic services.

For more information, see the document G/SPS/GEN/823