RESTRICTEDWORLD TRADE
ORGANIZATIONWT/ACC/MOL/17
23 June 1999
(99-2559)
Working Party on the
Accession of MoldovaOriginal:  English
ACCESSION OF THE REPUBLIC OF MOLDOVA
Information on Sanitary and Phytosanitary Measures
The Ministry of the Economy of the Republic of Moldova has submitted the following
information on Sanitary and Phytosanitary Measures, w ith the request that it be circulated to Working
Party members.
_______________WT/ACC/MOL/17
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Information on Sanitary and Phytosanitary Measures
1. The description of relevant laws and regulations, administrative orders etc, relating to
the implementation and administration of the SPS Agreement of the WTO.
The Government of the Republic of Moldova herewith submits information on the status of
Moldova’s legislation and regulations and its institutional infrastructure in the field of sanitary and
phytosanitary measures.
Hereafter is presented the legal and institutional framework regarding SPS regulation in the
Republic of Moldova and measures undertak en to meet WTO provision, as follows:
i. SPS measures concerning phytosanitary protection;
ii. SPS measures regarding veterinary activity;
iii. SPS measures concerning sanitary-epidemiological protection.
A. SPS MEASURES CONCERNING PHYTOSANITARY PROTECTION
1. Legal and institutional framework
The Law No. 506-XIII of 22 June 1995 “On Phytosanitary Quarantine” (a translated copy will
be provided) establishes the State Phytosanitary Quarantine Service as the body specially enabled in
the field of phytosanitary  quarantine which is constituted by the State Main Inspectorate for
Phytosanitary Quarantine and district, municipal and border phytosanitary quarantine inspection and
fumigation teams.
Article 5 of the Law enables the Phytosanitary Service to approve rules and instructions
regarding phytosanitary quarantine, to approve the list of phytosanitary quarantine objects, to perform
phytosanitary quarantine control and laboratory expertise, etc.
Article 6 lists the objects of phytosanitary quarantine concern: seeds and seedling material,
planting material, live mushrooms, bacteria, viruses, agricultural, vehicles, transportation means,
storing spaces, etc.
The Law also establishes the procedure for setting up and removing the phytosanitary
quarantine.
The Governmental Decision No. 697 of 10 October establishing the Statute of the State
Phytosanitary Quarantine Service (a translated copy will be provided) foresees a more comprehensive
list of items subject to phytosanitary quarantine, stipulates in more detail the obligations and rights of
the Phytosanitary Quarantine Service and establishes the importation, exportation and transition
regulations concerning phytosanitary quarantine control.
Governmental Decision No. 1154 of 15 December  “On improvement of the activity of the
control services at the border” (a translated copy will be provided) was enacted to increase the
efficiency of the control activity of all services at the border. It stipulates that starting on 1 January
1998, the sanitary-quarantine, veterinary, phytosanitary and ecological services, located within border
control zones, will be subject to direct control and will certify within their competence only importedgoods.
Another important document regulating phytosanitary quarantine activity is “The Rules on the
protection of the territory of the Republic of Moldova against the entry or introduction from otherWT/ACC/MOL/17
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countries of quarantine pests, pathogenic agents of plant diseases and weeds” (a translated copy of the
Rules is provided). The Rules were issued by the Phytosanitary State Inspectorate and establishes the
objects of the phytosanitary quarantine; items forbidden for import, items allowed for import;
stipulates regulations concerning usage of the imported seeds and seedling material; establishes the
rules for exportation of fresh fruits, grapes, vegetables and seedling material, establishes specialregulations for prevention of the spread of potatoes quarantine objects; sets regulations for
importation and usage of fresh citrus fruits, and regulations concerning transportation of products
subject to phytosanitary quarantine.
The Main Inspectorate issues other specific phytosanitary regulations, instructions and
standards that are approved by the Chief of the Inspectorate. District or municipal phytosanitary
inspection cannot issue phytosanitary regulations, they can only make proposals on enacting newregulations. Moldova recognizes and applies international phytosanitary standards or
recommendations issued by the European Plant Protection Organization. Currently, Moldova is
making considerable efforts to become a full member of this organization.
2. Measures undertaken in order to comply with the WTO provisions
The Main Phytosanitary State Inspectorate elaborated a Draft Governmental Decision
amending the Governmental Decision 697 through a Supplement (a translated draft copy is provided)
that was added to the Annex 1 of the Governmental Decision 697 establishing the Statute of the State
Phytosanitary Service. The Supplement implements the provisions of the WTO SPS Agreement as isindicated in  the SPS Checklist (document WT/ACC/MOL/20).
B. MEASURES REGARDING VETERINARY ACTIVITY
1. Legal and institutional framework
The main regulatory document of the veterinary activity is the Law No. 1539-XII of
22 June 1993 “On veterinary activity”  (a translated copy will be provided). The Law defines under
Article 4 the Veterinary Service as being a system of unified veterinary institutions, organizations,
enterprises, cooperatives and small enterprises with a veterinary orientation, as well as veterinary
specialists, realizing a set of special measures for the prevention of diseases and treatment of animals,
the sanitary-veterinary expertise of products and raw material of animal and vegetal origin andestablishes its area of competence. The Ministry of Agriculture establishes the structure of the State
Veterinary Service in accordance with the necessity of formation of veterinary institutions, taking into
consideration the territorial-administrative division of the Republic, and the distribution of animals.
The central body of the State veterinary service is the Direction of Veterinary Medicine with the State
Veterinary Inspectorate subjected to the Ministry of Agriculture and Processing Industry. The Law
lays out the requirements to obtain the right to ex ert veterinary activity. According to the Law foreign
citizens are allowed to exert veterinary activity after they pass a special test. The Law also establishes
the obligations and responsibilities of specialists providing veterinary activity. The Law stipulates the
obligation of the animal owners and actions that the Veterinary Service is entitled to undertake in
cases of depicting diseases and zooanthroponoses.
The Statute of the Veterinary Service was enacted through the Governmental Decision No.
378 of 22 June 1993 “On Adoption of the Veterinary Statute of the Republic of Moldova” (a
translated copy will be provided). The Statute describes in a more comprehensive manner the
Veterinary Service, establishes the obligations of the veterinary specialists, animal owners, enterprisesproducing, processing, storing, transporting and ma rketing animal and animal products, fodder and
preparations of veterinary usage. The Statute also gives instructions on establishment and removal of
the quarantine in cases of animal infectious illnes ses, regulates the sanitary-veterinary survey of the
processing, traffic and marketing, of animals, products and raw materials of animal origin.WT/ACC/MOL/17
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The State Veterinary Inspectorate in entitled to issue specific veterinary measures which are
approved by the Chief of the Veterinary Inspectorate. Moldova also applies recommendations or
guidelines contained in the International Code of Epizootics, elaborated by the International Office of
Epizootics. Moldova has become a member of this organization in 1994.
Measures undertaken in order to comply with the WTO provisionsAs stated in the SPS Checklist (document WT/ACC/MOL/20) a Supplement is being drafted
and will be added to the Governmental Decisi on No. 378 of 22 June 1993 “On Adoption of the
Veterinary Statute of the Republic of Moldova”. This supplement will be fully analogous to the draft
Supplement on phytosanitary measures, and will bring Decision 378 into compliance with WTO.
C. SPS MEASURES CONCERNING SANITARY-EPIDEMIOLOGICAL PROTECTION.
1. Legal and institutional framework
The Law “On Sanitary-Epidemiological Protection of the Population” (a translated copy will
be provided) was enacted in 1993 and sets the background for the sanitary-epidemiological protection
activity in the Republic of Moldova. The Law establishes the rights and obligations of natural and
juridical persons as regarding insurance of sanitary-epidemiological protection; provides the general
sanitary epidemiological requirements with regard to building activity, domestic production,
processing technologies, raw materials, food products, imported products, the maintenance of spaces
and territories, the quality of potable water, etc.
The Law also establishes the State Sanitary-Epidemic Services which constitute a uniform
system of hierarchically organized bodies and establishments headed by the Ministry of Health.
The State Sanitary-Epidemic Service includes the Scientific-Practical National Centre of
Preventive Medicine which made up of:
- Main sanitary - epidemic administration of the Ministry of Health;
- The Department of Hygiene and Epidemiology of the Research Institute of
Prophylactic and Clinical Medicine;
- Republican Centre of Hygiene and Epidemiology;
- Republican Centre of Prophylaxis and AIDS Control;
- Republican Centre of Hygiene and Epidemiology in Transport, regional and urban
centres of hygiene and epidemiology, other sanitary-prophylactic establishments, and
district and municipal centres of hygiene and epidemiology and other institutions ofpreventive medicine.
Governmental Decision No. 816 of 12 December 1995 “On the Rules on Sanitary-
Epidemiological State Supervision in the Republic of Moldova” (to be translated). According to this
Governmental Decision, the sanitary-epidemiologic al protection of the population is undertaken by
the State Sanitary-Epidemiological Service of the Ministry of Health which includes the National
Scientific-Practical Centre of Preventive Medicine, district and municipal centres of hygiene and
epidemiology  and other institution of preventive medicine.
The Decision establish the obligations of th e State Sanitary-Epidemiological Service:
- to organize scientific researches in th e field of hygiene, epidemiology, health
protection;
- to find out the environmental factors of negative influence on human health;WT/ACC/MOL/17
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- to elaborate normative acts in the field of epidemiological protection;
- to supervise the fulfilment of the national programs of sanitary-epidemiological
protection;
- to elaborate and to enforce sanitary-hygienic regulations and supervise their
fulfilment;
- to authorize the use of chemical preparations, etc.
- Article 10 stipulates that natural and juridical persons that are culpable for apparition
of illnesses shall compensate the cost s for their removal to the sanitary-
epidemiological institutions.
- Moldova also applies sanitary-epidemiological measures issued by the World Health
Organization.
Measures undertaken in order to comply with the WTO provisions
As stated in the SPS Checklist (document WT/ACC/MOL/20) a Supplement is being drafted
and will be added to the Governmental Decisi on No. 816 of December 1995 “On Approval of the
Rules on Sanitary-Epidemiological State Supervis ion in the Republic of Moldova”. This supplement
will be fully analogous to the draft Supplement on phytosanitary measures, and will bring Decision
816 into compliance with the WTO.
2. Information regarding:
(a) Names of publications, of any, on work relating to SPS measures:
(i) “Monitorul Oficial” publishes information, instruction on SPS measures.
(b) the name and address of the inquiry point(s) foreseen Annex B, Articles 3 and 4 of the WTO
Agreement on Sanitary and Phytosanitary (the Agreement) with and indication as to whether
it is/they are fully operational;
The inquiry point created within the Department of Standards, Metrology and Technical
Supervision (DSMTS), is named Information Centre of Standardization and Certification . This
Centre is also the inquiry point for SPS measures.
The official address is:
28, E. Coca St.
Chisinau, MD-2039
Phone: (373-2) 75 04 60 int. 219Fax: (373-2 ) 75 05 81
E-mail: standart@standart.mldnet.com
Contact person: Pavel CHEPTENE
Currently the database of the inquiry point is being elaborated and it is expected to be fully
operational by the day of accession.
(c) The name and address of the agency dealing with consultations as foreseen in Article 11 of
the Agreement;
(i) Phytosanitary measures
State Main Inspectorate for
Phytosanitary QuarantineWT/ACC/MOL/17
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Street: Ialoveni, 100B, 2070
Chisinau,
Republic of Moldova
Phone: (+373 2) 72 71 55
(ii) Veterinary measures
Ministry of Agriculture and
Processing Industry
Street: Stefan cel Mare, 162, 2012
Chisinau,
Republic of MoldovaPhone: (+373 2) 24 80 90
(iii) Sanitary measures
Ministry of Health
Street: V.Alexandri 1, 2009
Chisinau,
Republic of Moldova
Phone: (+373 2) 72 96 18
Fax:     (+373 2) 73 87 81
(d) The name and address of agencies that are dealing with other specific functions foreseen in
the Agreement;
(i) Phytosanitary measures
State Main Inspectorate for
Phytosanitary Quarantine
Street: Ialoveni, 100B, 2070
Chisinau,
Republic of Moldova
Phone: (+373 2) 72 71 55
(ii) Veterinary measures
Ministry of Agriculture and
Processing IndustryStreet: Stefan cel Mare, 162, 2012
Chisinau,
Republic of Moldova
Phone: (+373 2) 24 80 90
(iii) Sanitary measures
Ministry of Health
Street: V.Alexandri 1, 2009
Chisinau,Republic of Moldova
Phone: (+373 2) 72 96 18
Fax:     (+373 2) 73 87 81WT/ACC/MOL/17
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(e) Measures and arrangements to ensure that national and sub-national authorities preparing new
SPS regulations or substantial amendments to existing ones, provide early information on
their proposals.
Principles applied concerning early publication are laid out in Article 4, paragraph (i) of the
Supplement, which says:
The Main State Phytosanitary Inspectorate:will notify the other members, through the WTO Secretariat, of products, intended to be
regulated, together with a short description of the objective and motivation for the proposedregulation. Such notifications are to be done during an early stage, when it is still possible to
introduce amendments, and when it is still possible to take into account comments.
An identical provision will be included in the draft Supplements being prepared to Decisions
378 and 816.
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