WOAH Online Stakeholders’ Consultation on the role of Veterinary Services on animal welfare in natural disasters in Europe
took place between 14 – 17 March 2023 and was attended by representatives of Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bulgaria, Croatia, North Macedonia, Greece, Kosovo*, Montenegro, Romania and Serbia, along with policy and decision-makers from the Europe Region (FAO/WHO/FVE), Members of the Steering Group of the WOAH Platform on Animal Welfare for Europe, and international Subject Matter Experts (SMEs).
The event was organized in three thematic sessions, and it aimed at capitalizing the lessons learned from the response and recovery phases of previous disasters for the development of new contingency plans and the improvement of the existing ones, defining short and mid-term effective actions to strengthen the Veterinary Services proactive attitude toward contingency planning, and further promoting animal welfare in natural disaster in the region, from the One Health (OH) perspective.
The Stakeholder’s Consultation followed a four steps process according to the Appreciative Inquiry Summit method:
The applied format allowed to focus on those aspects that work best for the community while managing natural disasters, as opposed to the traditional approach of problem diagnosis and solution search.
According to the participants, there is a clear need to focus on communication and cooperation between Competent Authorities (develop legislation, define roles, responsibilities and chain of command) and partners. Mapping of competencies and resources at multi-disciplinary level (Government, IGO, NGO, private, industry, public) will allow to identify, prioritize and harmonize soft and technical skills to be acquired in preparation for emergency situations. WOAH Members should advocate for support in various policy areas, such as civil protection, humanitarian aid, climate, development, research and health. A stronger engagement with the NGOs will help to raise awareness for disaster mitigation, preparedness, and improve the policy-making process. WOAH Members’ opportunities to access to dedicated funds earmarked for OH investments may be favoured by a constant interaction between different actors and stakeholders. Political commitment and resource availability are key. The Veterinary Services should be better integrated within Disaster Management and Risk Reduction systems, with clear roles and responsibilities.
Proposed initiatives to be taken during the new Action Plan of the WOAH Platform were discussed. Participants highlighted the need to develop guidance documents and tools (for developing contingency plans, operational procedures, and instructions) and predefined template documents. Regional collaboration should be boosted, along with communication and cooperation between authorities, actors and stakeholders. The Platform should offer other opportunities to share experiences from past events (including the triannual pilot project), keep a broad scope (livestock, companion animals and wildlife) and organize practical activities/on-field exercises.
At the individual level, Members might further strengthen their preparedness and response capacity to manage veterinary emergencies with a One Health approach by raising awareness, organizing simulation exercises, and activating mechanisms for coordination with other Competent Authorities, actors and stakeholders.
The outcomes of the Stakeholders’ Consultation will be included in the results of the ongoing regional needs assessment for building Veterinary Services’ preparedness to deal with animal welfare issues during natural disasters and contribute to laying down the new initiatives of the 4th Action Plan of the WOAH Platform on Animal Welfare for Europe (2024- 2026).
