The “Technical Assistance for Animal Health Systems to Address Emerging and Priority Zoonotic Diseases and Health Threats in Lao PDR” project aims to help the Department of Livestock and Fisheries (DLF) of the Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry in prevention, early detection, preparedness, and response to zoonotic diseases to pre-empt the emergence and mitigate the impact of these threats.
Infectious disease outbreaks can have devastating health, economic, political, and social consequences worldwide. Many pandemic threats are associated with “zoonotic diseases” or “zoonoses” – diseases that can spread between animals and humans. Approximately three out of every four new and emerging infectious diseases in people come from animals. This means that continuous attention to animal-origin diseases remains a priority for governments worldwide, including Lao PDR.
APPROACH
With collaboration and support from the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) and the United States Agency for International Development (USAID), DLF aims to strengthen multi-sectoral coordination, understand disease drivers, improve laboratory capacity and networks, develop risk reduction policies and best practices, and enhance preparedness and response in the country. To ensure inclusivity and long-term impact, the project has applied the One Health approach, which aims to strengthen animal health systems to reduce the risks and impacts of emerging infectious diseases, antimicrobial resistance, and bio-threats.
IMPACTS AND RESULTS:
Strengthened Coordination
Coordination among key stakeholders from various sectors has been enhanced. Through multilateral and multi-sectoral consultations and close collaboration, project work plan and implementation arrangements, including coordination mechanisms and the roles and responsibilities of partners, have been agreed and acted upon accordingly.
One Health Initiative
With collaborative efforts among partners, the One Health approach has been applied and exercised nationally. The One Health Committee has been established to ensure a continuous platform for multi-sectoral collaboration.
To improve multilateral and multi-sectoral collaboration among stakeholders at the sub-national (provincial) level, One Health stakeholders from human, animal, and environmental sectors in 18 provinces met to enhance the reporting network in combating zoonotic and emerging infectious disease threats while ensuring a better understanding of One Health priority risks in the country.
Surveillance, Laboratory, and Workforce
The project has trained and provided up-to-date knowledge of basic field and advanced epidemiology to provincial and national veterinary staff through a new program with specially designed curriculums and modules. The National Animal Health Laboratories’ capacity has been enhanced to meet international standards on quality assurance, quality control, biosafety, and biosecurity.
