Economy Ministry issues new import provisions – some data must be in Arabic on inner and outer product packaging

The Tripoli-based Libyan government’s Minister of Economy and Trade, Mohamed Hwej, issued a decision (No. 398/2023) yesterday obligating all importing companies of all types and activities to put data of products supplied by the company on the outer packaging and the inner packages of the imported commodity.

This data is:

1. The name of the product.
2. The name of the factory, its address and its trademark.
3. The country of origin.
4. The size in international units.
5. The list of components/ingredients of the product.
6. The date of production, and the validity day, month and year.
7. The international identification number.
8. The trade name of the importing company.
9. The registration number in the commercial register of the importing company.
10. The address of the importing company.
11. Any warning statements or alerts issued by the health authorities regarding the goods.
12. Any other data stipulated in the legislation in force.

The new decree stipulates that the company’s data be written in Arabic on the cover of the imported product in a clear and appropriate manner that is easy to read.

Inspection and conformity companies must abide by the provisions of the decision when inspecting goods and prevent any commodity from entering Libyan territory in case of violating the decision.

The Minister of Economy gave the Municipal Guard and the various control agencies the authority to seize goods and products that violate the provisions of the decision and to take the necessary measures with the violators.

The decree goes into force from 1 October 2023.