ALINORM 03/26/1 - codex - BSN

32 REP12/CAC
205. The Representative thanked all donors for their contributions to the CTF and called attention to the
fact that India had become the newest donor to the CTF and the recent contribution from Finland was also
acknowledged.
206. The Delegation of Cameroon, speaking as CCAFRICA Coordinator, thanked donors for the keen
attention given to the region by the CTF managers and recognized that the management of the Fund was
deemed balanced in the region, for which it also thanked WHO. The Delegation nevertheless stressed that
criteria for eligibility should be revised, especially with regard to “graduation” and called for reconsideration
of the countries less prepared to “graduate”.
207. Several delegations called for a review of the criteria that were used to establish the CTF country
groupings based on several considerations including the size of the economy, the health and trade problems
faced by the country or the changing economic or political circumstances and asked for reconsideration of
the status. The Delegation of Costa Rica, speaking as CCLAC Coordinator, also proposed to revise the
criteria in the light of what had been agreed by the region, as stated in the report of the last Session of
CCLAC (REP11/LAC).
208. Delegations acknowledged the success of the pilot initiative that had taken place in the area of the use
of microbiological criteria and requested that this be extended to other areas of Codex work. It was also
suggested that CTF “graduates” could “mentor” other countries with less experience to help them participate
effectively in Codex. It was further suggested to have an information bank of pilot projects so that countries
might access this and draw on these experiences, including through Coordinating Committees.
209. The following comments were also made: participation of developing countries in Codex work had
substantially increased; the bulk of the support should continue to be used to support the least developed
countries; activities to achieve Objectives 2 and 3 were supported; and countries should prioritize their
participation in Codex. The contribution of CTF donors was acknowledged and with reference to the
statistics on contributions in CX/CAC 12/35/13, section C, a call was made for other members to contribute.
210. In response to the above, the Representative of WHO recalled that the criteria for the CTF had been
extensively reviewed in 2011, taking into consideration discussions at the 33 rd Commission and all
FAO/WHO Coordinating Committees and that this had resulted in the creation of the new Group 4. With
regard to the sustainability of participation in Codex by CTF graduates, the data on this were provided in the
CTF Transitional Monitoring Report under Outcome 1-1. These data were constantly under review by the
CTF with FAO and WHO to allow for intervention as and when necessary directly with concerned countries.
211. The Representative noted the point made on the difficulties faced by small economies and highlighted
that this would be looked at in conjunction with other criteria, such as the data on sustained participation in
Codex, as had been done for least developed countries and small island developing states prior to
establishing Group 4. The suggestion with regard to looking into how Codex graduates might undertake
“mentoring” roles had also been noted. The Representative stated that all information on pilot initiatives and
projects would be made available for easy consultation by all. A final comment was made with regard to
Codex capacity development whereby the resources available for this component in the CTF were
strategically targeted to complement the efforts of FAO and WHO in this area.
212. The Representative of FAO thanked the donors who made the activities of the CTF possible. The
Representative pointed out that the CTF was meant to act as a catalyst for participation in Codex. The aim
was to reach a stage where special measures were no longer necessary to ensure participation in Codex. It
was also highlighted that capacity development takes time and it was important to make sure that time
frames were reasonable. The FAO/WHO Coordinating Committees would be used to begin discussions on
what support developing and transition economy countries might need in the future, as well as the areas of
Codex work that might benefit from partnership initiatives such as the one that had been used to draft
examples of the use of microbiological criteria.
OTHER MATTERS ARISING FROM FAO AND WHO (Agenda Item 11b) 47
Provision of Scientific Advice
213. The Representative of WHO, on behalf of FAO and WHO, introduced the document CX/CAC
12/35/14 which was divided into 2 parts, namely recent FAO/WHO expert meetings and consideration by
Codex; and status of requests for FAO/WHO scientific advice.
47 CX/CAC 12/35/14; CX/CAC 12/35/14-Add.1.