WORLD TRADE
ORGANIZATIONG/SPS/GEN/387
G/TBT/W/204
15 April 2003
(03-2069)
Committee on Sanitary and Phytosanitary Measures
Committee on Technical Barriers to TradeOriginal:  Spanish
COMMUNICATION FROM MEXICO
The following communication, dated 9 April 2003, has been received from the delegation of
Mexico with the request that it be circulated to Members of the Committee.
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1. Pursuant to paragraph 3 of Annex B of the Agreement on the Application of Sanitary and
Phytosanitary Measures and Article 10.3.1 of the Agreement on Technical Barriers to Trade, the
Government of Mexico hereby reports that the Ministry of the Economy, through the General
Directorate of Standards, published the National Standardization Programme for 2003 in Spanish in
the Diario Oficial de la Federación  (Official Journal) on 7 April 2003.
2. Under Article 61-A of the Federal Law on Me trology and Standardization, the National
Standardization Programme for 2003 includes a list of the issues which are to be developed over the
coming year as Mexican official standards ("technical regulations" and "sanitary and phytosanitary
measures"), reference standards for government procurement and Mexican standards ("voluntary
standards") by the departments and agencies of the Federal Public Administration and registered
national standards bodies, respectively.
3. In particular, the National Standardization Programme for 2003 covers a total of 4,799 subject
areas, 577 of which correspond to Mexican official standards, 4,127 to Mexican standards and 95 toreference standards.
4. All draft technical regulations and sanitary and phytosanitary measures prepared on the basis
of this Programme will, in due course, be published in the Oficial Journal for public consultation and,
where appropriate, notified to the Secretariat of the World Trade Organization through the Central
Registry of Notifications.
5. This notification is provided for purposes of transparency and in order to furnish Members
with further information on the Mexican regulatory process.
6. The National Standardization Programme for 2003 may be consulted in Spanish at the WTO
Secretariat (office 1033), on the Web site www.economia.gob.mx/?P=85  and at the Mexican National
Enquiry Point.
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