Event Information

During the WTO SPS Committee’s Fifth Review of the Operation and Implementation of the SPS Agreement, WTO Members identified fall armyworm (FAW) as an important topic for future work. This side event examined national and regional responses to the recent FAW outbreak in East Africa and in other parts of the world. Speakers highlighted the importance of reducing unjustified barriers to trade and ensuring that farmers can use the tools and technologies they need to reduce losses, increase production, and engage in international trade. They also presented on some of the key challenges they encountered, including coordination across borders for emergency use authorizations of crop protection tools and enabling environments that were not prepared to adopt biotechnology solutions. Following these outbreaks, the East African Community (EAC) has taken steps to facilitate a regionally harmonized emergency response in the future. The capacity of regulatory systems to quickly respond to pest outbreak emergencies is especially important within the context of climate change and uncertainties around the distribution, frequency, and severity of future pest outbreaks. Speakers addressed emerging tools and technologies, as well as regulatory approaches that will be necessary for countries and regions to respond to pest outbreaks. 

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