3.107.  The ministries and agencies responsible for SPS controls at the border include mainly the Committee on Food Security (CFS) under the Government, the Ministry of Health and Social Protection (MOH), and the Customs Service

3.108.  Under the CFS: the State Veterinary Supervision Service is in charge of veterinary-related controls; the Department of Food Security, through its three regional divisions and 36 state food safety control points, is responsible for SPS control at the border; the National Diagnostics of Food Safety conducts research work through its three regional centres and 19 city centres for food safety diagnostics; and the State Service on Phytosanitary Inspection and Plant Quarantine takes care of phytosanitary inspection and quarantine for plants and seeds

3.109.  Under the MOH, the Agency for Public Health is responsible for sanitary and epidemy control. Imports of processed food products must have sanitary documents ("passports"). The MOH has controlling officers at the border to inspect, analyse, and issue "sanitary and epidemiology conclusions" before customs can clear consignments. Both the goods (such as processed food products, chemicals, and radioactive substances), and the vehicles bringing in the imports, must undergo inspection and obtain a conclusion before they may enter the territory. Goods are tested in toxicology labs to determine compliance with maximum residue levels, and a conclusion is only given to complying goods

3.110.  The authorities stated that, among all the 17 technical regulations, 4 are related to SPS requirements: on juice products from fruit and/or vegetables; on feed and feed additives; on food products, meat and meat products; and on milk and dairy products (Section 3.3.2). Among these four, the Government Resolution No. 190 on Technical Regulation of Food Safety, Safety of Meat and Meat Products, Safety of Milk and Dairy Products, 2016 stipulates SPS requirements on microbiological, physico-chemical, chemico-toxicological, and radiological indicators

3.111.  The Department of Agriculture Policy and Food Security's Monitoring Unit of Food Security and WTO Issues, under the Ministry of Agriculture, is the enquiry point under the Agreement on the Application of Sanitary and Phytosanitary Measures (SPS Agreement), while the Department of WTO Affairs, under the MEDT, is the notification authority.[68] Tajikistan has not made any notification to the WTO under the SPS Agreement since its accession in 2013. No STCs were raised against Tajikistan in the SPS Committee since 2013

3.112.  Tajikistan is a member of the World Organization for Animal Health (OIE), the Codex Alimentarius, and the International Plant Protection Convention (IPPC). The authorities stated that laws and SPS-related legislation were harmonized with the requirements of the WTO, the OIE, the IPPC, and other international regulatory legal acts

3.113.  At the regional and bilateral levels, Tajikistan has signed: the Agreement on Plant Quarantine of the CIS member States, in 2016; the Agreement in the Field of Phytosanitary and Plant Quarantine, with Uzbekistan, in 2018; the Complex of Joint Actions of the CIS member States for the Prevention and Control of Rabies for the period up to 2025, in 2017; the Agreement on Cooperation in the Field of Veterinary, with Azerbaijan, in 2018; the Memorandum on Cooperation in the Field of Veterinary, with the Kyrgyz Republic, in 2014; the Interregional Cooperation of the Russian Federation and the Republic of Tatarstan, in 2016; and the Uniform Rules of State Veterinary Supervision for International and Interstate Transportation of Livestock Goods, in 2016, through the Argus Automatic System

3.114.  The Trade Portal (https://tajtrade.tj/?l=en), launched in April 2019, provides a step-by-step description of import and export procedures, including legislation related to SPS measures (Table 3.13)

3.115.  The authorities stated that, in Tajikistan, about 10%-15% of agricultural harvest is lost due to pests and disease, and thus the CFS carries out inspections, both at the border and domestically, on agricultural produce, to protect the national territory from diseases

3.116.  Products subject to SPS requirements, if imported, must have documents confirming their quality and safety. Measures adopted at the border include: mandatory veterinary and phytosanitary diagnostic studies; preventive treatment of exported products; and registration of relevant accompanying documents

3.117.  To import animal and animal products, veterinary certificates and other documents of veterinary control and supervision, issued by veterinary specialists of the CFS, are required. When importing and exporting live animals, they are subject to a 10-day compulsory quarantine requirement

3.118.  To import food and food products, a veterinary permit, or an import quarantine permit, issued by the CFS, is required

3.119.  Under Law No. 751 on the Permitting System, 2011, when importing and exporting plants and plant products, phytosanitary certificates are required. The products must be free from quarantine pests, diseases, and weeds, and the cargo must be free from all types of pests, plant diseases and weed seeds. Government Decree No. 510 on Approval of the List of Quarantine Materials, 2010 lists plants that are allowed to be imported into Tajikistan. Phytosanitary risk analysis takes into account of the age of the plants, the degree of spreading of the pests, and the application of pesticides, among others

3.120.  Other rules governing the importation of plants (fruit, planting materials, plant pests, pathogens, plant products, soil, and vegetables) are contained in: Law No. 1567 on Quarantine and Protection of Plants, 2019; Government Decree No. 450 on the Rules and Norms of Plant Quarantine, 2013; and the requirements of the IPPC. The authorities stated that, currently, 123 types of products are subject to compulsory phytosanitary and quarantine inspections in Tajikistan

3.121.  Importation of genetically modified organisms (GMOs) is regulated under the Law on Biosafety and Bio-Protection. The Institute of Botanica, Genetics and Physiology is currently conducting a study on GMOs. An inter-ministerial working group, composed of the CFS, Tajikstandard, and the MOH, was established to regulate GMOs, including establishing admissible GMO levels in food. Imports of GMOs must be clearly labelled

3.122.  Regarding SPS measures on exports, local laboratories test and certify exports. In addition, veterinary certificates, export quarantine permission, and phytosanitary certificates are required for different products. The Government requires: mandatory veterinary and phytosanitary diagnostic studies; preventive processing of export products, through fumigation by the CFS; registration of all relevant documents; and when exporting live animals, a mandatory 10-day quarantine, and examination of the state of the region for certain infectious diseases

3.123.  As with imports, the CFS is also in charge of issuing phytosanitary, veterinary, and other SPS-related certificates and documents for exports

3.124.  The WTO Standards and Trade Development Facility (STDF) organized capacity-building activities for Tajikistan. Tajikistan's agriculture potential faces many challenges regarding compliance with international requirements, including the duplication of safety controls on food products, fragmented surveillance of agricultural value chains, and lack of coordination between agencies.[69] Tajikistan lacks an efficient registration system for pesticides, an effective monitoring system, and laboratories. The excessive use of pesticides, and the low quality of the pesticides on the domestic market, affect food safety and public health negatively. Thus, in 2018, the STDF began its project to improve food safety in honey and apricots, to boost their exports, through improving the understanding and management of agri-chemicals and veterinary medicines. This project is to terminate in 2021

3.125.  In 2017-18, the STDF implemented a project on shaping market access by building phytosanitary capacity,[70] to address complaints raised by some of Tajikistan's trading partners. According to these complaints, the national plant protection agency the State Service on Phytosanitary Inspection and Plant Quarantine under the CFS had several non-compliance incidents related to the detection of plant pests. Thus, the STDF implemented this project with the intention of strengthening the capacity building of the national plant protection system to enhance market access

3.126.  In 2015-16, the STDF implemented a project to improve food control to meet international requirements. This project was terminated on 30 September 2016.[71]