France makes donation to support food safety and trade

The money to the Standards and Trade Development Facility (STDF) will help developing countries comply with international food safety, animal and plant health standards and access agricultural markets easier.

It will help developing and least-developed countries improve sanitary and phytosanitary (SPS) capacity.

The STDF is managed by the World Trade Organization (WTO).

Roberto Azevêdo, WTO director general, said: "This donation from France will help developing and least-developed countries comply with international sanitary and phytosanitary standards, enabling these countries to trade more, with all the benefits that brings for growth and development."​

Jean-Marie Paugam, France's permanent representative at the WTO, said it views trade-related assistance as an important aspect of the organization's activities.

“Our country has supported developing countries since the inception of the Doha Trust Fund and other funding programmes, committing more than ​€​28m. ​

“In the future, we want to focus increasingly on programmes with proven impact. In this regard, the STDF has already achieved impressive results. ​

“We are very pleased therefore to make this donation to the STDF and we will seriously consider the possibility of increasing our contribution in the near future.”​

France has contributed €17m (CHF 20m) to WTO trust funds in the past 17 years.