The League of Arab States (LAS) and the Arab region respectively have one of the lowest levels of intra-regional trade despite preferential market access provided under the Pan Arab Free Trade Agreement (PAFTA). The potential exists, but is yet untapped, and analysis shows that by removing remaining obstacles to trade, there is potential to increase total trade of member states by 10% and to create at least 2 million jobs.Fifty four percent of the Non-Tariff Measures (NTMs) in the region are mainly related to technical barriers to trade (TBT) and sanitary and phytosanitary (SPS) measures, which poses negative impact on intra-regional trade especially in food and agricultural products. Although several countries in the Arab region have taken steps to upgrade their food safety systems, the capacity and efficiency of many countries still need to be enhanced in order to assure an adequate surveillance of locally produced and imported food, as well as to demonstrate compliance with food standards in export markets. Therefore, regional cooperation and harmonization among LAS member states is critical for the successful execution of the PAFTA agreement.