Enhancing international cooperation, information exchange and fostering Environmental aspect in One Health
The second Global Conference on One Health was held in Japan on 10 and 11 November under the chairmanship of the World Veterinary Association (WVA) and the World Medical Association (WMA), in collaboration with Japan Medical Association (JMA) and the Japan Veterinary Medical Association (JVMA). This two-day conference with participation of over 600 participants from 31 countries around the world reached agreement on the importance of policy advocacy and sustained political attention for the application of One Health. Besides, the role of environmental health aspects was included in One Health discussions moving forward (for example, on antimicrobial contamination from aquaculture, agriculture uses, and contamination resulting from human uses). In addition, the need to increase support for more cross-disciplinary professional development programs for human and animal medical practioners, and to encourage additional resources for research in preventative strategies to enhance the One Health concept and approach, were also mutually agreed between participants.
Another noteworthy event in December 2016 was the global conference on One Health – EcoHealth in Melbourne, Australia with the participation of nearly 1,000 delegates from 86 countries in the world. The Conference focused on (i) One Health – Ecohealth – Environment; (ii) Food and Nutrition Systems - Feeding our World Safely and Sustainably; (iii) Responding to Emerging Diseases and Invasive Species and (iv) Integrating Science, Policy and Action.
From Viet Nam, nearly 20 representatives of related organizations participated in the conference, coming from national agencies such as the Department of Animal Health (DAH), the National Institute of Animal Husbandry, the National Institute of Hygiene and Epidemiology (NIHE), the Tay Nguyen Institute of Hygiene and Epidemiology (TIHE), the Hanoi University of Public Health (HUPH), the Viet Nam One Health University Network (VOHUN), as well as Vietnam-based personnel of international organizations including the United States Agency for International Development (USAID), the Defense Threat Reduction Agency (DTRA), the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), the International livestock research Institute International (ILRI), and the Oxford University Clinical Research Unit (OUCRU). In particular, presentations from Viet Nam focused on major themes such as antimicrobial resistance, rabies, food safety, the circulation of avian and swine influenza viruses, intersectoral coordination, national initiatives and regional training programs in One Health field, etc. This was considered to be the first international forum to connect specialists in One Health and Ecohealth fields to work together with the common goal of addressing global health challenges. It was also an opportunity for Viet Nam to show its strong commitment and contributions to One Health and EcoHealth, and provided an invaluable opportunity to the Vietnamese delegates to learn, exchange information and broaden their regional and international networks.
Following the success of above-mentioned events, global cooperation in One Health/Ecohealth is expected to be promoted through a number of notable events in the upcoming time such as the WVA/WMA 3rd Global Conference on One Health, 5th One Health Congress in Saskatoon, Canada (22-25 June, 2018) and 7th Biennial EcoHealth Conference in Cali, Columbia (15-18 August, 2018)./.
