Representatives of government and development partners at the launch event. - Vientiane Times
VIENTIANE: The government has introduced internationally recognised Standard Operating Procedures for wildlife health surveillance to prevent and reduce disease risks to humans, animals and environmental health.
The procedures will be implemented through collaboration between the Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry and the Wildlife Conservation Society.
They will be rolled out under a functional surveillance network in response to disease events in wildlife through a One Health approach.
Maintaining and monitoring wildlife health is important for conservation, ecosystem integrity, sustainable development, and biosafety and biosecurity.
Standard Operating Procedures are designed to be the standard technical document for the implementation of wildlife health surveillance and are applied when animals are found sick or dead of unknown causes in natural habitats, wildlife farms, zoos, wildlife rescue and rehabilitation centres, circuses, along the trade chain, and in communities.
The purpose is to provide technical guidance to stakeholders, including government, the private sector, and non-governmental organisations working in wildlife conservation, in the surveillance, investigation, and control of and response to, wildlife morbidity and mortality events and disease outbreaks with the aim of reducing disease risks to animals and humans and the associated impacts on the economy and livelihoods.
Speaking at the launch, Deputy Director General of the Department of Livestock and Fisheries, Dr Souphavanh Keovilay, said compliance with the Standard Operating Procedures for wildlife health surveillance is critical to ensure the early detection of and response to disease events.
The procedures will meet the needs of all the parties involved, define the responsibilities of each relevant agency and outline the steps to follow when detecting incidents of unusual wildlife morbidity or mortality and wildlife disease outbreaks.
This includes procedures for data collection, sampling and carcass collection, and diagnostics to determine the cause of illness or death, as well as basic guidelines on wildlife disease outbreak management, cooperation with the relevant parties, and wildlife health data management procedures.
Application of the Standard Operating Procedures will also bring wildlife health surveillance in Laos in line with international standards and the guidelines of the World Organisation on animal health. – Vientiane Times/ANN
