Vietnam holds One Health Conference on infectious diseases

Vietnam has taken the maximum effort and collaborated with international and regional countries to fight avian influenza H5N1, Deputy Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development Vu Van Tam said.
Vietnam has taken the maximum effort and collaborated withinternational and regional countries to fight avian influenza H5N1,Deputy Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development Vu Van Tam said.

At the third One Health Conference co-organisedby the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development and the HealthMinistry in Hanoi on February 3, he underlined the need for long-termcommitments to the combat against diseases that can be transmitted fromanimals to humans in any circumstances, while handling risks of emerginginfectious diseases at the human-wildlife animal-environment interface.

Vietnam has made good progress to date butstill needs to develop a strategic One Health (OH) coordinationmechanism along with an OH action plan and road map, said PratibhaMehta, United Nations Resident Coordinator in Vietnam.

International experience suggests that for sustainable results “OneHealth” requires multi-sectoral approach, beyond human and animal healthsectors to include partners from natural resource management, ecosystemhealth, and development planning sectors, she added.

In recent months, worldwide attention has focused on the impact ofnew and emerging infectious diseases. Increasing pressure on fragileenvironments has brought humans, livestock and wildlife into ever closercontact.

Diseases that cross over from animalsto humans, including Ebola and avian influenza, can have massive, rapidand far-reaching consequences on human health, livelihoods, food safetyand economic development.

Vietnam is located ina relatively high-risk region for new, re-emerging and recurringinfectious diseases in humans, livestock and animals. Given the threatposed by new and emerging diseases the UN still urged for strongercooperation between human, animal and ecosystem health under the ‘OneHealth’ umbrella.

At the conference,participants discussed how to form a One Health partnership tobroaden out mandate and scope of the existing Partnership for Avianand Human Influenza Prevention (PAHI).

ThePartnership will bring different sectors and disciplines together toidentify potential public health risks related to zoonotic infectiousdiseases and to align and coordinate prevention and control actions.-VNA

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