The Ministry of Climate Change and Environment (MOCCAE) is hosting the second edition of the Week of Innovation in Veterinary Services that seeks to enhance efforts to develop livestock production, strengthen food safety, and increase investment in this space.
Running from February 7 to 10, the virtual event promotes innovation and the use of world-class technologies. It builds on the Forum of Veterinary Pharmaceuticals that MOCCAE has organized several times as part of its strategy to ensure livestock sustainability and food safety.
The activities of the Week seek to educate workers in the public and private sectors about the importance of registering and trading only licensed veterinary pharmaceutical products that are sourced from reliable suppliers, as well as the need to rationalize the use of antibiotics to improve the quality and safety of animal-derived food products.
The agenda comprises webinars and sessions dedicated to topics such as veterinary registration, relevant local, regional, and global regulations, reducing bacterial antibiotic resistance, rules for manufacturing, transport, and storage of veterinary products, as well as the challenges related to unlicensed products and proposed solutions, and the risks to animal health and productivity posed by counterfeit and falsified veterinary medicines.
In his opening remarks, His Excellency Eng Saif Al Shara, Assistant Undersecretary for the Food Diversity Sector at MOCCAE, said: “Developing and sustaining animal wealth is a core target for the Ministry as part of its priority to enhance food security and safety in the UAE. Veterinary products, including medicines and vaccines, are a pillar of animal production 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. In addition, the country has multiple control mechanisms, approved by MOCCAE and implemented jointly by the concerned federal and local government entities.
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, has devised national plans to reduce the use of veterinary antibiotics to avoid their misuse in line with the recommendations of the World Organisation for Animal Health (OIE), the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), and the World Health Organization (WHO).
He noted that organizing the second edition of the Week of Innovation in Veterinary Services aligns with the UAE’s approach to drive collaboration and sharing of experience and expertise.
The first day of the event included multiple sessions on local, regional, and global legislation applicable to veterinary product registration, and on countries’ experience in developing registration systems in line with best practices.
The second day will explore the topic of antimicrobial resistance, including programs for addressing the problem on local, regional, and global levels. It will also highlight the UAE’s compliance with its international obligations and its active role in combating antimicrobial resistance in the veterinary sector, and educating veterinaries, livestock breeders, and workers in the sector on the topic.
The third day will feature a training workshop on Good Manufacturing Practice (GMP), aimed at outlining key guiding principles of veterinary product manufacturing and quality control, including the aspects of production and testing that affect product quality. A presentation of major international legislation that obliges manufacturers to follow GMP and its guidelines is also on the agenda.
The last day of the event will put a spotlight on pharmacovigilance – the science and activities concerning the detection, assessment, understanding, and prevention of adverse effects or any other medicine- and vaccine-related problem. A training workshop will highlight key activities of tracking and detecting veterinary products, whether imported or locally manufactured, to limit their side effects and curb drug counterfeiting. In addition, global regulations and best practices in this field will be presented.
The Week has brought together officials and experts from OIE, FAO, the UK Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food, concerned entities from the UAE, Saudi Arabia, Jordan, Egypt, Bahrain, Kuwait, Qatar, Oman, the Gulf Health Council, and the Secretariat General of the GCC. In addition, experts from leading international animal health industry businesses, such as Zoetis, MSD, Elanco, and Boehringer Ingelheim Animal Health, are participating in the activities.