Harmonization of Sanitary and Phytosanitary Standards in Cocoa Trade: How Competitive are the Major Exporting Countries?

The importance of Sanitary and Phytosanitary (SPS) standard stems from its usefulness in ensuring plant, animal and human safety. However, stringency and multiplicity of the export standards stand in the way of achieving gains of trade globalization and true competitiveness by developing countries that are mostly exporters of primary agricultural produce. To this end, this study analyzed the effect of stringency of SPS standards on the competitiveness of cocoa exporters from the perspectives of individual importing countries and harmonized standards. The study found out that the increasingly stringent global standards improved trade rather than hampering it, exporting countries lost huge revenue in the absence of harmonization and exporters competitiveness was dependent on market type and scale of trade. The study recommended that cocoa exporting countries should take care of hindrances to supply-side factors, engage in country and market-specific negotiations on standards harmonization at the WTO and get involved in inter-governmental engagements. Keywords: SPS measures, harmonization, competitiveness, cocoa, international trade JEL: C23, F14, F18, Q17, Q18 Acknowledgement :