Promoting food safety, animal and plant health is vital for countries to protect health, access markets and trade, which in turn supports economic growth and livelihoods. For developing countries, this means putting in place SPS measures to meet the international standards set out in the WTO SPS Agreement.
Evaluating SPS capacity on food safety, animal and plant health is a first step to identify and address priorities, including the development of needs-based projects. Tools developed by FAO/WHO, OIE and IPPC provide the evidence and knowledge for making informed decisions on SPS investments.
While the standards of Codex, WOAH and IPPC are recognized by the SPS Agreement, many more organizations are involved in SPS capacity building and have developed accompanying evaluation tools:
- IPPC Phytosanitary Capacity Evaluation Tool (PCE)
- FAO/WHO Food Control System Assessment Tool
- WOAH PVS Pathway for the Sustainable Improvement of National Veterinary Services and Aquatic Animal Health Services
- IICA Performance, Vision and Strategy (PVS) for National Veterinary Services
- IICA Performance, Vision and Strategy (PVS) for National Food Safety Services
- IICA Performance, Vision and Strategy (PVS) for National Plant Protection Organizations
- IICA Performance, Vision and Strategy (PVS) for SPS: An Institutional Vision
- IFC Scan Guide: Policy and Regulatory Dimension of Food Safety, Food Fortification, Food Loss and Waste, and Livestock Production
The STDF released a publication providing information on the scope and use of 12 capacity evaluation tools developed by international organizations. This publication is a useful reference for all those interested in evaluating capacity needs in the SPS area. It covers sectoral tools related to food safety, animal and plant health, as well as cross-sectoral tools and related methodologies.