Standards experts agree steps to improve market access for developing countries: standards experts recommended measures to help developing countries, so that standards on goods don't act as trade barriers.

• Author: Gujadhur, Shyam

Experts on product standards from around the world met to discuss how to help developing countries overcome market access barriers relating to technical standards at a workshop in Geneva (June 2005).

While the agreement concluding the Uruguay Round of trade talks lowered many tariffs, exporting countries still face trade barriers in the form of high standards for industrial and other goods. To reduce these barriers, the World Trade Organization (WTO) Agreements on Technical Barriers to Trade (TBT)--for industrial goods--and on the Application of Sanitary and Phytosanitary (SPS) measures (for plant and animal imports) require countries to base their regulations on international standards.

Standards can restrict trade

However, the standards often do not reflect their concerns since most developing countries, particularly least developed countries, are unable to participate effectively in setting standards. Lacking the infrastructure to check and certify technical standards (known as conformity assessment), these countries face another problem when trying to prove that their products meet international standards.

ITC and the Commonwealth Secretariat conducted case studies in six developing countries to review their implementation of the WTO Agreements on TBT and SPS, and the technical problems they faced when exporting. The studies resulted in a joint publication entitled Influencing and Meeting International Standards: Challenges for developing countries, which contains recommendations to help developing countries to overcome technical problems with market access.

The recommendations for technical assistance include:

* Mentoring and twinning arrangements to improve developing countries' participation in standardization activities at international level.

* Creating greater awareness among industry and trade associations of the need to take more active interest in standardization activities at national and international level.

* Practical help to meet requirements in export markets, for example through brochures that explain technical regulations and SPS measures applicable to certain products.

* Help to establish export-alert systems to signal changes in...