World Trade Organization (WTO) members have begun to carry forward their new 2019-2021 work plan to review the operation and implementation of the WTO’s Agreement on Technical Barriers to Trade (TBT).
In line with the work plan, two thematic sessions on good regulatory practices and conformity assessment procedures were held on 5 March at WTO headquarters, before members convened a regular meeting of the TBT committee on 6-7 March. Throughout a two-day TBT committee meeting, WTO members discussed 59 specific trade concerns, including 11 new concerns.
The talks come four months after the WTO’s Eighth Triennial Review of the TBT Agreement, which saw members adopt a new roadmap for reducing technical barriers to trade.
In addition, the committee heard a report from the Secretariat on trends in notifications and specific trade concerns during 2018. The findings suggest that overall, there has been a high level of implementation of the TBT Agreement transparency obligations by WTO members since 1995, with 137 members (84% of membership) having submitted at least one notification of a proposed technical regulation or conformity assessment procedure.
The report also found that in 2018, members continued to improve implementation of the notification obligations: 3,065 notifications of new or changed TBT measures were submitted by 86 members, both all-time highs, following a consistent upward trend.
Members discussed 184 specific trade concerns (STCs) in 2018, continuing the upward trend, the vast majority of these were previously raised STCs. Only 22 new STCs were raised during the past year.
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By GlobalDataThe next committee meeting is scheduled for 20-21 June 2019. The meeting will be proceeded by a thematic session on Transparency and an informal meeting on conformity assessment procedures, on 18-19 June.
