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Standards and Trade Development Facility

The Standards and Trade Development Facility (STDF) is a global programme in capacity building and technical co-operation established by the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), the World Organization for Animal Health (OIE), the World Bank, the World Health Organization (WHO) and the World Trade Organization (WTO).

The strategic aims of the STDF are:

• to assist developing countries enhance their expertise and capacity to analyze and to implement international sanitary and phytosanitary (SPS) standards, improving their human, animal and plant health situation, and thus ability to gain and maintain market access; and

• to act as a vehicle for co-ordination among technical co-operation providers, the mobilization of funds, the exchange of experience and the dissemination of good practice in relation to the provision and receipt of SPS-related technical co-operation.

In addition to facilitating international trade, SPS capacity building can result in improved human and agricultural health conditions for local markets and so favour economic and social development.

In achieving its aims, the STDF acts both as a co-ordinating and a financing mechanism.

Coordination

As a co-ordinating mechanism, the STDF is a forum for information sharing on past, present and planned SPS-related technical co-operation activities. Central to the STDF's co-ordination role is reporting on technical co-operation provided or planned, the sharing of project and programme implementation experience and the dissemination of good practice in relation to both the provision and receipt of SPS-related technical co-operation. A further component of STDF's co-ordination function is to ensure that projects and other proposed initiatives do not duplicate past, present or planned technical co-operation activities.

Funding

Two forms of grant financing are available through the STDF. Project preparation grants for project development are a key mechanism in the STDF programme and aim to bridge the gap between the identification of needs and their articulation into sustainable projects. An additional component of the STDF's work in this respect consists of the mobilization of financial resources within the general donor community to fund resultant projects, rather than relying exclusively on the Facility's limited budgetary funds.

In addition, grant financing is available for projects which address underlying issues of SPS capacity building in developing countries, or on a regional basis, ideally through innovative, preventative pilot projects which may be replicated by other donors. Grant financing is also available for projects which aim to address gaps in SPS information, training materials, or improve coordination among SPS technical cooperation providers.

Funding for projects and project preparation is awarded by the STDF Working Group. The deadline for the submission of applications for funding is set 45 days prior to each Working Group meeting to allow a detailed review and evaluation of the proposals.

Working Group meetings are tentatively scheduled to take place on 27 February, 26 June and 16 October 2009. Deadline for submission of project proposals are close of business days 19 December 2008, 24 April 2009 and 16  August 2009.

Applications for funding are particularly encouraged from public and private sector organizations in Least Developed Countries (LDCs) and/or Other Low Income Economies (OLIEs)

Partner Institutions:

Food and Agriculture Organization	World Organization for Animal Health
World Health Organization	World Bank Group
World Trade Organization

Site Last Updated on April, 2008

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