The Ministry of Climate Change and Environment (MOCCAE) today launched the Week of Innovation in Veterinary Services to provide a platform for experts from the UAE and abroad to share experience and scale up the conversation on various aspects of animal health and sustainable animal farming.
Running until February 11, the virtual gathering comprises webinars and sessions dedicated to international standards of animal welfare and leveraging world-class technologies to develop veterinary products. The forum has drawn the participation of representatives of the World Organisation for Animal Health (OIE), the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), multiple international institutions concerned with animal health, and relevant local authorities.
Building on the success of the Scientific Forum for Veterinary Medicine in the UAE that MOCCAE organized previously, the event seeks to highlight the role of innovation in developing and regulating veterinary products.
In his opening remarks, His Excellency Eng Saif Al Shara, Assistant Undersecretary for the Sustainable Communities Sector and Acting Assistant Undersecretary for the Food Diversity Sector at MOCCAE, said: “Developing animal wealth is a core target for the Ministry as part of its priority to enhance food security and sustainability in the UAE. Veterinary products, national plans to combat antimicrobial resistance, and animal health and welfare programs are the pillars of animal wealth and health. The direct link between animal health and public health mandates the regulation of these pillars to boost biosecurity and keep zoonoses at bay.”
He noted that the UAE works relentlessly to achieve these goals, having developed a comprehensive legislative framework, including the Federal Law No. 9 of 2017 regulating the handling, trading, marketing, and circulation of veterinary products.
His Excellency Eng Al Shara added that despite global efforts to safeguard animal health, there are still major challenges, most prominently antimicrobial resistance. In this context, MOCCAE, in collaboration with its partners, is devising a national plan to reduce the use of veterinary antibiotics in line with the recommendations of OIE, FAO, and the World Health Organization (WHO).
Speaking on the Week of Innovation in Veterinary Services, His Excellency Eng Al Shara said: “The UAE believes in collaboration and exchange of experience as the basis of any successful endeavors – hence the idea of organizing the event. As the first of its kind in the region, the gathering focuses on four aspects – the importance of veterinary products registration to ensure their validity, safety, and effectiveness, combating antimicrobial resistance, animal health, and animal welfare.”
The first day of the gathering saw multiple sessions take place under the umbrella of the Innovation Lab on Veterinary Products. OIE spoke on its role in the International Cooperation on Harmonisation of Technical Requirements for Registration of Veterinary Medicinal Products (VICH) program. In addition, experts provided overviews of the centralized GCC registration procedures for veterinary products, global regulatory benchmarks and good regulatory practices in veterinary medicine, and countries’ experience in the registration of veterinary products.
The second day will explore the topic of antimicrobial resistance, including global programs for addressing the problem, alternatives to antibiotics, the integrity of veterinary services and its role in combating the issue, and the use of medically important antibiotics in food-producing animals.
The agenda of the third day will focus on innovation in animal welfare and stray animal management programs, highlighting relevant initiatives in Dubai and the Sharjah Cat and Dog Shelter as models, and The Camel Farm in Sharjah as a case study of successful farm management. The participants will also examine international animal welfare standards and the role of public-private partnerships in animal welfare.
The last day of the event will put a spotlight on innovation in animal health and development. Topics will cover the mechanism of commercializing traditional farms, the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the poultry sector, and the importance of diagnosis for animal health. Furthermore, the experts will review select modern animal production techniques and discuss the current status of poultry viral respiratory diseases.