TRANS BOUNDARY ANIMAL DESEASE PROGRAMMES

Trans Boundary Animal Desease Programmes

Most of the countries in the Region import both live animals and animal products, either from countries within or from outside the Region, a situation that  requires applying strict animal quarantine measures. The livestock sector already faces the problem of

ncreasing demand, which would become more acute through losses due to rises in animal diseases.  Even if this sector managed to improve; the transboundary animal diseases could make it an untradable commodity and, furthermore, would have a devastating impact on the household supply of animal protein. Animal health, transboundary animal diseases, livestock trade, import of livestock products, quarantine and zoonotic diseases are therefore becoming serious issues within decision-making circles in the Region. Indeed, in some cases these issues have become national issues. Rinderpest, Foot-and-Mouth Disease (FMD), Peste des Petits Ruminants (PPR), Rift Valley Fever (RVF), Old World Screwworm (OWS), Brucellosis and Bovine Spongiform Encephalopathy (BSE) for example, have become regular topics for the agenda, not only in meetings between Chief Veterinary Officers (CVO’s), but at higher level meetings even between heads of states.

  

FAO/EMPRES was conceived and implemented in 1994 to strengthen FAO’s role in championing the goal of enhanced world food security, through focusing on the prevention of transboundary animal diseases and plant pests. The EMPRES-Livestock aim is: “to promote the effective containment and control of the most serious epidemic livestock diseases, as well as newly emerging diseases by progressive elimination on a regional and global basis through international co-operation involving early warning, early/rapid reaction, enabling research and co-ordination”. 

Thus while the prime thrust of the EMPRES-Livestock component is on rinderpest, it also addresses other diseases of importance to this Region, including Foot-and Mouth–Disease (FMD), Peste des Petits Ruminants (PPR), Contagious Bovine Pleuropneumonia (CBPP), Rift Valley fever (RVF), lumpy skin disease, and Newcastle disease of poultry.

 RADISCON, the Regional Animal Disease Surveillance and Control Network project (RADISCON), was a joint FAO/IFAD endeavour targeted at 29 countries, including 22 countries from the RNE Region, and aims to promote animal disease surveillance within and amongst countries. The project consists of assisting each individual country to establish its own National Animal Disease Surveillance System (NADSS). Communication between participating countries can take place electronically, using Internet/ electronic mail facilities.

 Phase II RADISCON, is the "Regional Animal Disease Surveillance And Control Network For North Africa, The Middle East and the Arab Peninsula.”  (for Pdf map of RADISCON clusters...  ).  A project proposal has been submitted to donors for funding of this program that will build on the achievements of the first phase of RADISCON through:

      Increased understanding of in-country and regional

priority disease situations through practical use of surveillance techniques

and information technology; and

     Enhanced exchange of disease information and networking in

the Region. Noteworthy to mention is that AHCNENA and RADISCON will work together in a complementary pattern. Copies from RADISCON Phase II project document could be acquired from AHCNENA. (Google--Internet).

Penulis : Drs.Simon Arnold Julian Jacob