SPS Committee Thematic Session on Science-Based SPS Import Controls to Facilitate Safe Trade

The SPS Committee is holding a thematic session on science-based SPS import controls to facilitate safe trade, following an initial proposal by the European Union (G/SPS/GEN/2292) to hold a thematic session on how to facilitate safe trade via efficient import controls using modern IT tools (IT risk analysis, AI, e‑commerce, etc.). The programme of this thematic session is contained in document G/SPS/GEN/2343/Rev.3. This thematic session follows-up on a recommendation in the Report of the Sixth Review of the SPS Agreement for the Committee to continue to engage and encourage Members to share experiences with new technologies and digital tools to facilitate safe trade, and to continue discussions on how to promote the adoption of novel approaches and related technologies, including digital tools to facilitate safe trade (G/SPS/74, para. 2.29). This session also builds on the Committee's Thematic Session on Approval Procedures held in November 2019 and Thematic Session on Digital Tools held in June 2024.

According to the WTO SPS Agreement, Members have the right to determine their appropriate level of sanitary and phytosanitary protection and adopt SPS measures and controls based on scientific risk assessment. The chosen level of protection is applicable both for domestically produced and imported goods. Import controls are crucial in verifying compliance with the relevant SPS requirements of the importing Member in order to protect human, animal and plant life and health. They can be complex, time and resource-intensive procedures, and there is an opportunity to determine whether some of these controls can be streamlined and modernized, including by using IT tools.

The thematic session could support the implementation of the SPS Agreement by addressing the following questions:

a.    how to better understand import controls, including new tools and developments, as well as opportunities for trade and the economy;

b.    how Members may improve import controls in their own jurisdiction;

c.    how the SPS Committee could continue its work on import controls.

The thematic session will be moderated by Mr Knut Berdal (Norway), Specialist Director at the Norwegian Ministry of Agriculture and Food.

The thematic session is scheduled to be held in Geneva on Monday 3 November from 15:00 to 18:00 (CET), and on Tuesday 4 November 2025, from 10:00 to 13:00 (CET), continuing in the afternoon from 15:00 to 18:00 (CET). The thematic session can be attended in person or via Zoom with WTO credentials using this link. The event will also be livestreamed: Monday, 3 November: https://youtube.com/live/IAjqXdGX5qg?feature=share; Tuesday, 4 November: https://youtube.com/live/F5XBB-i-meA?feature=share. Interpretation will be provided in English, French, and Spanish.