On 11-13 September, the Argentine Republic and Australia will host a regional workshop at the Palacio San Martín, which will be attended by representatives of almost twenty countries interested in the development of electronic phytosanitary certificates, a tool that dynamizes and facilitates international trade and which Argentina has been developing since 2017.
Argentina has electronic phytosanitary certificates that meet international standards, which affords the country a leading role in this area along with Australia, New Zealand, the Netherlands, Canada and the United States.
The "Exchange of Experiences in Electronic Phytosanitary Certification (E-phyto)" workshop will enable the countries in the region to enhance their capabilities to use the e-Phyto tool and thus facilitate international trade in vegetable-origin products, making trade more dynamic and secure.
The workshop, which is cosponsored by the Plant Health Committee of the Southern Cone (COSAVE) and the Inter-American Institute for Cooperation on Agriculture (IICA), will be attended by representatives of Belize, Bolivia, Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Costa Rica, Cuba, the Dominican Republic, Ecuador, El Salvador, Guatemala, Mexico, Nicaragua, Panama, Paraguay, Peru, Uruguay and Vietnam, among others.
There is growing interest in the use of e-Phytos, both at National and International Phytosanitary Protection Organizations and in industry sectors and the private sector. E-Phytos reduce the possibility of documentation being forged, enhance efficiency and facilitate the speedy clearance of goods in international trade.
Within the framework of the commitments made at the Forum for East Asia-Latin America Cooperation (FEALAC), Argentina and Australia undertook cooperation actions in 2017 through a visit to Australia by Argentine experts from the National Service for Agri-food Health and Quality (SENASA) -funded by the Argentine Fund for International Cooperation (FO.AR)-, with a view to sharing experiences and knowledge, both countries having a leading role in the matter. Subsequently, as a result of the visit, an initiative was introduced to boost this work by organizing a regional capacity-building seminar for the countries in the region.
The aim of this workshop is to strengthen and harmonize knowledge so as to speed up and broaden the implementation of the e-Phyto solution by the countries in the region.
Press Release No. 362/18