 |
 |
31. EMPRES has become the most important part of FAO's programme for animal health since the Council decision of 1994 to expand this work. The goal of the programme is to promote the effective containment and control of the most serious epidemic livestock diseases, as well as of newly emerging diseases, by progressive elimination on a regional and global basis through international cooperation in the following four areas:
32. The major thrust of EMPRES's early warning activity has been the management of disease information (collection, evaluation and decision-making). A primary tool for this has been the development of software for TADinfo. This program provides for the recording and analysis of disease information gained from reports of outbreaks, structured surveillance exercises and other sources.
33. Countries that have identified the need for a disease information database have a range of options, including developing their own database or modifying another product. TADinfo offers countries the important benefit of having a purpose-built system that will be maintained and upgraded at minimal expense to them, since the bulk of the work will be done by FAO.
34. TADinfo has been adopted as the national animal disease database by several countries, including the United Republic of Tanzania, Malawi, Namibia, Ghana, Pakistan and Saudi Arabia. It is under consideration or about to be adopted by others, including Uganda, Kenya, Thailand and Viet Nam. A regional as well as a national version of the program is being developed; it is already being used as a central system within the Southern African Development Community (SADC) and will also be applied in an Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) network, both with TCP funding assistance. It is being translated into French, which is expected to facilitate its adoption in West African countries. While there are regional and international benefits to standardization, it is not essential to the success of TADinfo that it be universally adopted, as data can be moved among different databases. TADinfo is a major contribution to the support of early warning systems.
35. EMPRES staff have long recognized that data collection in the field is by far the greatest challenge, especially in developing countries. Both passive and active surveillance systems have been promoted, particularly in the context of GREP, when countries have become provisionally free but are vulnerable to the reintroduction of disease, or its spread from residual foci, and early detection is critical. Such activities are embodied in the EU-funded and FAO-implemented epidemiology component of the PACE programme and have featured prominently in TCP projects directed towards rinderpest eradication. Surveillance systems have also featured in other TCP activity, such as FMD control. The EMPRES programme has developed considerable disease surveillance material, all of which is of a high standard and represents a valuable resource to countries that commonly have difficulty gaining access to current information.
36. Several countries have been assisted in the development of early warning systems. Much implementation activity has revolved around finding the appropriate means of collecting and reporting disease information, including through programmes that develop the privatized delivery of basic animal health services where government delivery of those services is weak and, in particular, in areas where nomadism constrains access to livestock. In such programmes, the collection and transmission of disease information to a central planning unit must be regarded as an essential service that should be publicly funded. Privatized basic veterinary services cannot be expected to collect the required information without compensation.
37. A key component of early warning is RADISCON. This was established by FAO in partnership with the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD) in 1996 and has sought to strengthen disease surveillance and communication within and among countries. At a time when it is being further enhanced by the introduction of TADinfo, it is under threat from uncertain funding as it is supported through an IFAD Technical Service Grant that is not renewable.
38. In early reaction activities the emphasis has been on promoting the principles of contingency planning and emergency preparedness, in order to create the capability for rapid response to a disease incursion. Excellent guides have been prepared for generic contingency plans and for specific rinderpest and ASF contingency plans. Multimedia software, available on the Web and CD-ROM and entitled Good Emergency Management Practices, has recently been launched and distributed to the chief veterinary officers of FAO member countries. This software is aimed at promoting an EMPRES code of conduct for dealing with animal health emergencies. Workshops on contingency planning have been conducted in Africa, Central Europe and Asia, and the preparation of rinderpest contingency plans has been assisted within several rinderpest TCP projects, including those in Uganda, Kenya and the United Republic of Tanzania. In some of the countries visited, improved contingency planning has been undertaken. Recent outbreaks of FMD in South Africa have forced national and provincial authorities to review their contingency plans. In Thailand, the need for a contingency plan for FMD has been recognized, even though the disease is endemic; the plan provides for a response to the introduction of a new virus type or to an increase in disease incidence to epidemic levels.
39. The concept of contingency planning has not been easy to promote. For countries with scarce resources and weak management and planning structures, concerns are generally focused on the very short term. Examples of contingency plans that were seen by the evaluation mission generally reflected the EMPRES template, which is presented as an ideal response situation and does not accommodate the manifest constraints under which veterinary authorities in developing countries operate. This suggests that personnel in many countries have not really grasped the essence of contingency planning as a dynamic process in which constraints are identified, prioritized and progressively addressed in order to improve the response capability.
40. Because of its emphasis on fieldwork, the evaluation had only limited opportunity for a detailed review of the enabling research component. However, it is clear that both FAO's support of research in priority diseases and the support of reference laboratories in disease control programmes are greatly appreciated by countries engaged in disease control activities. The role of the Institute for Animal Health at Pirbright, the United Kingdom, as the world reference laboratory for both rinderpest and FMD is particularly important, as it provides a source of verification for national laboratory testing and facilitates the application of molecular epidemiology for tracing the spread of pathogens. The laboratory of the International Cooperation Centre on Agrarian Research and Development - Département d'élevage et de médecine vétérinaire (CIRAD-EMVT) at Montpellier, France, has been designated as the world reference laboratory for CBPP and has been involved with the Pan-African Veterinary Vaccine Centre (PANVAC) in standardizing new vaccine strains for PPR and CBPP. A Japan-funded project has enabled EMPRES, through PANVAC, to promote vaccine technology transfer, standardization and quality assurance principles for vaccines in Africa. Recently, PANVAC has published a method for the cost-effective production of heat-stable vaccines. Although this technology is highly relevant to Africa and South Asia, PANVAC's continued involvement in such work is threatened by a lack of funding since the funding from Japan ends in 2001.
41. FAO has also established a list of other institutes and laboratories that provide scientific and technical support to both EMPRES and member countries as reference laboratories or collaborating centres for specific diseases or disciplines.
42. AGE has been instrumental in introducing and expanding diagnostic capabilities in developing countries, with an initial emphasis on rinderpest diagnosis and on enzyme linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) as the appropriate technology. Subsequently, the programme has expanded to include PPR, FMD, CBPP, swine fever and other diseases. The range of diagnostic technology has also expanded, especially into polymerase chain reaction (PCR) techniques for the detection and characterization of pathogens. AGE's activities have been closely coordinated with programme support, so that the introduction of laboratory diagnostic capability has been directly linked to addressing disease control needs. The programme usually seeks to support only one laboratory in each country, as being the most efficient means of ensuring sustainability. This is appropriate because laboratory operations are usually constrained by high operational costs and a lack of adequately qualified staff.
43. As the programme's main focus is global rinderpest eradication, the GREP Secretariat has been the most important coordinating agency. FAO also provides a secretariat for EUFMD. In Asia, FAO coordinates APHCA, providing workshops and other means of communication within the Asia region and acting as a source of information for livestock production and disease. In Southeast Asia, OIE has a coordinating role for FMD control, and FAO works closely with this unit to promote a regional approach to such control. As a result of RADISCON's work, an Animal Health Commission for the Near East and North Africa will soon be created.
GREP
44. It is appropriate that the coordination of GREP has been a major focus of EMPRES activity. Establishment of the programme was the turning point for the conversion of separate initiatives in regional rinderpest eradication into a programme with a truly global vision. In several situations, TCP funding has been used to excellent effect in controlling rinderpest outbreaks rapidly and efficiently. Few other donors have this rapid response capability, and it is a highly appreciated function in recipient countries. TCP projects have resulted in the containment and elimination of rinderpest from foci identified in Kenya and northern areas of the United Republic of Tanzania (the latter involved additional funding from UNDP), and from Afghanistan in 1996-1997. Another TCP project has produced a much-improved situation in Pakistan (which is now well placed to proceed with eradication) with additional EU funding for rinderpest epidemiological studies. TCP has also assisted Uganda in maintaining freedom from clinical disease and proceeding towards provisional freedom. Other actual or potential residual foci of infection in the Sudan and Somalia have been identified and, in spite of the difficult conditions, plans are being put into place to address these.
45. FAO has also had operational responsibilities in the implementation of the EU-funded Pan-African Rinderpest Campaign (PARC) and the programme for Pan-African Control of Epizootics (PACE). Activities have included epidemiological support and technical assistance to PANVAC. The complex relationships among the EU as donor, OAU-IBAR as the implementing agency and FAO as the provider of technical assistance to these two programmes, have led to some debate over management responsibilities. The maintenance of good relationships among the agencies is obviously critical to the success of GREP.
46. In anticipation of global sero-surveillance to prove freedom from disease, which will be a major task, it has been recognized that security problems in some areas will preclude advancement along the OIE pathway for verification of freedom from disease, as required for international trade purposes. Rather than proceeding with such verification on a national basis, it has been proposed that seven agro-ecological zones be recognized as the basis for verifying freedom.
47. The GREP Secretariat has mapped out an action plan for final verification of global freedom, which would achieve the target of eradication by the year 2010. The plan includes components for eliminating residual reservoirs of infection, managing the cessation of vaccination and establishing the verification process. Intensive public awareness is a critical component in the final verification steps. FAO and OIE have recently accepted the regional approach as complementary to - but not a replacement of - the established nation-based OIE pathway. This will ensure that the progressive verification of global freedom from rinderpest does not leave gaps owing to the exclusion of some developing countries.
48. GREP has entered a critical stage in which, on the one hand, targeted action is needed to eliminate the remaining three foci of suspected rinderpest while, on the other hand, GREP needs to lead a sustained six-year programme for the international verification of world-wide freedom from rinderpest. While funding for the former objective is forthcoming, for the latter it is not assured.
APHCA
49. FAO provides secretariat support for APHCA through the Regional Office for Asia and the Pacific in Bangkok. APHCA is partly funded by contributions from participating countries (US$ 3 000 to US$ 9 000 depending on their livestock populations). This demonstrates the importance that member countries attach to APHCA, which was established as a forum for the regional coordination of animal health and production activities. APHCA's annual budget for 2000-2001 is US$ 228 100, of which US$ 75 900 are from member subscriptions and the balance from FAO. FAO's contribution of US$ 152 200 is made up of US$ 89 200 for staff time and US$ 63 000 from non-staff resources. The membership of APHCA is generally at the level of director-general of livestock departments. Annual meetings are held and some sponsorship is provided by FAO for delegates, outside of the trust fund budget.
50. In recent years, a wide range of workshops, consultations, exchanges and training programmes have been arranged to deal with priority areas of the APHCA work programme. These have covered animal health, animal production, meat and dairy development, and biotechnology, including veterinary drug and vaccine production and registration. A publication, Asian Livestock, which was originally printed each month, is now published electronically on a quarterly basis. The FAO office also provides an important service to network members in sourcing published information on livestock disease and production, in order to assist countries with limited access to such resources.
EUFMD
51. EUFMD was established in 1954 as a Special Body of FAO to combat FMD in Europe and coordinate national FMD control programmes. The commission has 33 member countries, usually represented at the level of chief veterinary officer, and meets every two years to receive information and decide on its orientation for the coming period. Besides the commission itself, and the secretariat within FAO, there is an eight-member executive committee that governs the commission between general sessions, a research group and (at present) two tripartite (EUFMD/EU/OIE) groups, one for the Balkans and one for the Transcaucasian countries.
52. The role of the commission is to coordinate the activities of member countries in controlling and preventing FMD. It provides support to member countries in FMD surveillance, circulates information on the FMD situation (especially when there is a threat to Europe) and provides advice on all aspects of FMD prevention and control to member countries on request. It organizes training and workshops in specific laboratory or epidemiological techniques. EUFMD also prepares guidelines on aspects of FMD control.
53. The administrative expenses of EUFMD are funded by contributions from member countries, according to a formula that takes into account national income and livestock population. Countries are placed in one of four categories; annual contributions vary from US$ 2 600 to US$ 26 000 per year, depending on the category. Separate trust funds have been established to fund other activities, such as the work of the two tripartite groups. The commission enjoys strong support from member countries, and there is no need to amend its present mode of operation.
54. Of the 22 TCP projects related to EMPRES, 19 were emergency projects, implemented because of a need for rapid response to a transboundary disease - rinderpest, PPR, CBPP, RVF, lumpy skin disease, ASF, Newcastle disease, FMD and rabies. Of the three EMPRES TCP projects that were not emergency projects, one was for rinderpest control in Pakistan, where the disease was endemic but had to be addressed to maintain progress with global eradication, and two were for FMD control, again in circumstances of endemic disease that were, nevertheless, highly appropriate to EMPRES priorities.
55. The project ratings given by missions are summarized in Table 5.
Table 5: Summary of the performance of individual EMPRES-related TCP projects
Project number |
E* |
Project title |
Rating |
||||
Rele-vance |
Design |
Implemen-tation |
Results |
Impact | |||
TCP/KEN/6612 |
Laboratory diagnosis for ASF |
2 |
1 |
2 |
1 |
1 | |
TCP/KEN/6613 |
E |
Rinderpest control |
3 |
3 |
3 |
3 |
3 |
TCP/KEN/6714 |
E |
Rinderpest control |
3 |
3 |
3 |
3 |
3 |
TCP/KEN/7821 |
E |
RVF control |
2 |
2 |
2 |
2 |
2 |
TCP/UGA/4554 |
E |
CBPP control |
3 |
2 |
2 |
2 |
2 |
TCP/UGA/6716 |
E |
Epidemic disease control (rinderpest and CBPP) |
3 |
2 |
2 |
2 |
2 |
TCP/URT/4553 |
E |
CBPP control |
3 |
3 |
1 |
1 |
1 |
TCP/URT/6714 |
E |
Rinderpest control |
3 |
3 |
3 |
3 |
3 |
TCP/URT/7821 |
E |
Disease surveillance and control (RVF) |
2 |
2 |
2 |
2 |
1 |
TCP/ZIM/4553
|
E |
Newcastle disease control |
2 |
1 |
2 |
1 |
1 |
TCP/RAF/8821 |
E |
RVF control |
2 |
2 |
3 |
3 |
2 |
TCP/GHA/8925 |
E |
ASF control |
2 |
2 |
2 |
2 |
+ |
TCP/TOG/8822 |
E |
ASF control |
3 |
2 |
2 |
1 |
1 |
TCP/BEN/6715 |
E |
ASF control |
3 |
2 |
2 |
2 |
3 |
TCP/MLI/4552 |
E |
Lumpy skin disease control |
3 |
2 |
2 |
2 |
2 |
TCP/RAF/7822 |
E |
ASF control |
3 |
1 |
2 |
2 |
1 |
TCP/AFG/0065 |
E |
TAD control (rinderpest and PPR) |
3 |
2 |
3 |
+ |
+ |
TCP/AFG/4551 |
E |
Animal rabies control |
2 |
1 |
2 |
3 |
1 |
TCP/AFG/6611 |
E |
Rinderpest control |
3 |
3 |
3 |
3 |
3 |
TCP/PAK/8923 |
Rinderpest control |
3 |
3 |
3 |
3 |
3 | |
TCP/THA/4452 |
Livestock movement control (FMD) |
2 |
2 |
2 |
2 |
3 | |
TCP/RAS/6611 |
FMD control |
3 |
2 |
3 |
3 |
2 | |
Average score |
2.64 |
2.09 |
2.32 |
2.19 |
2.00 | ||
1 = poor;
2 = satisfactory;
3 = good;
* E = emergency;
+ = too early to assess.
56. All the EMPRES projects were considered to be relevant or highly relevant to national needs; this is not surprising since most projects were in response to a disease outbreak. They were of a fairly uniform design, comprising the provision of emergency vaccine or preventive drugs, together with technical assistance, and this was viewed as appropriate. They often included components of training and of early warning or early reaction, such as strengthening surveillance or preparing contingency plans, and this was regarded as entirely appropriate. Some of the projects, however, had significant design problems which brought down the overall score level to slightly more than satisfactory, indicating this as an area that needs improvement. For example, the designers of a project on the laboratory diagnosis of ASF in Kenya should have been aware of the absence of electricity and water at the facility, and should have either designed the project differently or postponed it until these problems had been resolved. The rabies control project in Afghanistan was designed to include the inappropriate mass vaccination of horses and donkeys, although fortunately this was not implemented. The design of the Newcastle disease TCP project in Zimbabwe was flawed in that it included a plan to experiment with a new vaccine approach, which was not appropriate in an emergency situation.
57. The quality of project implementation, including the delivery of both national and international consultancy services, was generally high. The identification of good, appropriate consultants has been a strong point of the implementation of animal health TCP projects.
58. Most of the TCP projects were implemented in circumstances of poorly resourced veterinary services. This meant that there was often a limit as to what could be achieved during the short course of a TCP project, through a relatively small external intervention with very limited resources and within a weak national infrastructure. Under such circumstances, the projects were generally well implemented and, in some cases, it was remarkable what could be achieved in a short time under very difficult conditions. The successful implementation of rinderpest control activities, particularly in Afghanistan and Pakistan but also in East Africa, was particularly commendable.
59. The most serious problem in implementing animal health activities was exhibited in the projects on CBPP control in the United Republic of Tanzania and on Newcastle disease in Zimbabwe. These were both emergency projects, but the FAO-purchased vaccine they used proved to be ineffective, and so the projects were ultimately unsuccessful. In both cases, the problem of poor vaccine quality should have been avoidable, and the fact that it occurred in two projects is a matter for concern.
60. It is worth noting that the seven projects dealing with rinderpest received by far the highest scores of any EMPRES-related projects. There are several interlinked reasons for this, including the high priority that governments place on combating a disease that is believed to have been eradicated from some of the countries, and FAO's extremely quick response to the outbreaks, particularly in comparison with that of other donors. FAO's commitment to eliminating rinderpest played a reinforcing role, by encouraging governments to seek assistance and FAO to respond quickly and positively.
61. The non-rinderpest EMPRES field projects had a more mixed record. Five of them dealt with ASF. These were valuable for raising awareness, but ASF control is complex and depends on factors that are not part of TCP projects (e.g. compensation for the owners of slaughtered animals and animal movement control). This complexity affected the ultimate success of some of these projects.
62. Three of the projects dealt with RVF and other flood-related diseases, subsequent to El Niño events of 1998. The two country-based projects ended up not dealing with RVF because the emergency had passed before the projects could be implemented. Funds were thus used to combat other diseases (e.g. lumpy skin disease and CBPP).
|
63. In other areas of animal health, FAO focuses on developing standards and quality control measures for interventions against parasitic diseases. The main tools used are international alliances, networks and scientific working groups.
64. The most important work in the environmental management of insect-borne diseases concerns the development of science-based standards for tsetse and trypanosomiasis control. PAAT started in 1995, and the FAO Conference endorsed it in 1997. PAAT's objective is to develop solutions to the problem of tsetse and trypanosomiasis, both human and animal, in the broader context of food security, health, rural development and sustainable agriculture. PAAT is an inter-agency alliance comprising FAO, the World Health Organization (WHO), IAEA and OAU-IBAR. PAAT is scientifically supported by an Advisory Group of Coordinators (an FAO Statutory Body). The role of this advisory group includes: providing technical advice on specific technical and scientific aspects of tsetse, trypanosomiasis and rural development; using individual members as focal points for one or more specific topics that are relevant to the programme and stimulating interchange on those topics; and disseminating the information collected through annual meetings and annual reports submitted by the focal points on particular topics. PAAT also has a programme committee to review progress and pave the way for concerted field programmes.
65. The formulation of policy frameworks, strategies and guiding principles for pest management is contained in a tsetse/trypanosomiasis database (PAAT-IS), the Tsetse and Trypanosomiasis Information Quarterly, training manuals, and PAAT position papers. PAAT-IS includes a Geographical Information System (GIS) that provides maps and data to generate impact prediction layers, access to all PAAT publications and country fact sheets.
66. Two major issues are highlighted concerning PAAT:
67. PAAT has played an important role in increasing public awareness of the broad implications of tsetse and trypanosomiasis and has stimulated calls for action. Funding support has increased recently through a major public-private collaboration between WHO and Aventis to secure drug supplies and support for sleeping sickness control. IAEA has also indicated future support from its technical cooperation funds.
68. Another channel for operational activities to control tsetse and trypanosomiasis is PATTEC. Its long-term goal is the eradication of tsetse-borne trypanosomiasis in Africa. The PATTEC initiative was endorsed by the OAU Assembly of the African Heads of State and Government in July 2000. The assembly commended the African countries that had initiated application of the sterile insect technique (SIT) and welcomed the establishment of the Pan African SIT Forum "as a mechanism through which sustainable area-wide tsetse eradication can be achieved".
69. A subsequent meeting of the PAAT Advisory Group of Coordinators (PAG) affirmed, in principle, support to PATTEC. However, the meeting also pointed out that progress towards elimination will vary by country and should focus on areas where eradication can provide the greatest benefits to human health, well-being and economic development. It suggested that eradication should be a stage-by-stage process and that disease control and tsetse suppression must be achieved before final eradication. In the case of human trypanosomiasis, control will continue to depend on disease surveillance and treatment for the foreseeable future, with tsetse suppression as a complementary tool. The meeting also recognized that SIT is the most appropriate method in the final phase of eradication, but that tsetse suppression has a greater role to play in the immediate alleviation of problems in priority areas, and is an important forerunner to eradication. In this connection, it should be noted that there are 22 different species of tsetse in Africa, and this multiplicity of species poses considerable challenges (including cost issues) to eradication by SIT in the foreseeable future.
70. Discussions on PAAT and PATTEC were held in September and October 2001, and resulted in OAU's recognition of PAAT technical criteria for tsetse and trypanosomiasis interventions. PAAT will serve as a forum through which FAO, WHO, IAEA and OAU-IBAR harmonize their efforts against tsetse and trypanosomiasis, while PATTEC will be responsible for mobilizing and coordinating the efforts of OAU Member States in the control and ultimate eradication of tsetse and trypanosomiasis throughout the continent. The agreement on control and ultimate eradication is considered to be an important one. The 2001 FAO Conference endorsed a resolution in support of both PAAT and PATTEC.
71. Although significant progress has been made, further efforts are still needed to improve harmonization in respect to detailed roles and responsibilities. In this, it will be important to recognize the inherent comparative advantages of both PAAT and PATTEC and how these can eventually be reflected in operational programmes.
72. The development of relatively inexpensive antiparasitic agents that are effective and easy to apply was a major factor in the fight against parasitic diseases in the twentieth century. While the possibility to prevent or cure economically important diseases was a breakthrough, it also provoked drug resistance, ecological imbalances and residues in meat, milk and wool. The development of resistance is linked to increased treatment frequency and dosage. Resistance affects trade between countries because of the possibility of introducing resistant parasites through the transfer or import of live animals. More than half of the OIE member countries reported resistance to one or more groups of parasites. In developing countries, it is becoming increasingly difficult to maintain a prevention and control approach based on antiparasitic agents because of high research and development (R&D) costs for new drugs and difficulties in maintaining proper registration and quality control in developing countries.
73. In developing countries, there is a need to manage the problem of resistance at four levels: a) through diagnosing resistance, using standardized techniques; b) through knowledge of the epidemiology of local parasites; c) through integrated parasite control, using a combination of chemical and non-chemical control technologies as a way of destabilizing parasite populations in which a higher proportion of individuals are genetically resistant to antiparasitic compounds - this level includes the development and validation of new sustainable control methodologies; and d) through the registration and quality control of antiparasitic agents. All of these steps require a nucleus of well-trained personnel who are capable of conducting the necessary applied research.
74. FAO has been involved in measures against ecto- and endoparasites since 1956.10 More recently, the Organization has been specifically involved in questions of resistance through the Working Group on Parasite Resistance (WGPR), established in 1997. The group gathers, organizes and analyses information on the epidemiology, diagnosis and control of parasites and the management of resistance to parasites, and assists FAO in preparing guidelines on the subject. WGPR works in collaboration with the pharmaceutical industry by means of a FAO/industry contact group. Industry is represented by the Veterinary Parasite Resistance Group, a specialized consultative group of the World Animal Health Industry Confederation (COMISA) which includes representatives of ten of the major companies that conduct R&D on antiparasitic agents. The two groups meet at the same time; the most recent meeting was in October 2001. The fact that individual experts and industry meet together under an FAO umbrella is good evidence of the impartial role that FAO can play in this area.
75. At the recommendation of WGPR, FAO has set up two regional reference laboratories for the diagnosis and control of ticks and tick-borne diseases: one, for Central America and the Caribbean, is located in Cuernevaca, Mexico (CENAPA), and the other, for South America, is in Montevideo, Uruguay (DILAVE). Both were established with small amounts of seed money (US$10 000 each) from the Regular Programme. They were set up to assume parts of the activities formerly carried out by FAO's World Acaricide Resistance Reference Centre, based in Berlin, and are intended to be extended to other parasites of economic importance (horn fly, helminths, mange and mites). A similar exercise is planned for Southern Africa.
76. FAO has also established three networks to distribute information from the regional reference laboratories, organize electronic conferences and produce electronic publications. Each network has a website containing all the available regional information for members and visitors as well as an electronic bulletin board. Two networks are in Latin America: one (CORPOICA), for ticks and tick-borne diseases, is based in Bogota, and the other (INTA), for helminths, is in Castelar, Argentina. Another helminth network has been established at the University of Pretoria, Onderstepoort, South Africa, where there has been a highly successful TCP project on the same subject. A major planned output for 2002 is an electronic publication on the diagnosis and control of parasite resistance.
77. FAO is contributing to the important topic of resistance (an estimated annual US$ 3.7 billion is spent on chemicals to control ecto- and endoparasites) as a forum for discussions and coordination. In this respect, industry involvement is particularly significant. However, unlike EMPRES and work on insect-borne diseases, the work on resistance does not feature much in FAO's programme planning documents. It is not mentioned in the Medium-Term Plan for 2002-2007, while work on parasites is given only a passing general reference in the Programme of Work and Budget for 2002-03, giving the impression that work on resistance is of low priority. Furthermore, there is no agreed vision on how such work should develop in the future, beyond the recommendations of WGPR. Much appears to depend on additional financing from industry.
78. Work relating to veterinary services has been consolidated into Regular Programme project 213A6 (Monitoring and Control of Production Limiting and Zoonotic Diseases).11 The policies and services delivered by governmental human health care providers have shifted, and individuals have had to take increasing responsibility for their own health. However, economies of scale and the limited number of entry points into the human food chain where zoonotic diseases can be efficiently attacked require the priority and focused handling of public veterinary services. Regular Programme work has aimed at developing policy and technical directions that enable governments to reinvigorate veterinary public health programmes and to deliver priority veterinary public health goods effectively.
79. AGAH has also contributed to AGA's work on focusing the activities of national veterinary services on WTO initiatives, which could enhance the benefits from trade in livestock and livestock products, protect national livestock industries from diseases and generally derive benefits from globalization. Guidelines have been prepared for chief veterinary officers and trade officials that elaborate on the WTO SPS Agreement. These guidelines explain how the SPS Agreement requirements can be met and used by governments under three different trade scenarios: in countries that wish to export livestock products; in countries that wish to import livestock products; and in countries that do not wish to import livestock products at this time.
80. The guidelines have been developed over a three-year period and will be published on the FAO-AGA and Bio-security portal Web sites.
81. One of the outputs of technical project 213A8 is "support to technology transfer aiming at more efficient delivery of veterinary and livestock support services". In this connection, FAO has been trying to assess and define how countries can decide which goods and services in the area of veterinary services are most appropriately delivered by the public sector, and which ought to be provided privately. This work is being undertaken as a response to the general trend towards privatizing clinical veterinary services. As a result of this trend, many goods and services that were formerly under the responsibility of the public sector are not being delivered, with the notable exception of donor-financed vaccination campaigns in some countries.
82. Initial activities in veterinary services included an electronic conference in 1997 on Principles for Rational Delivery of Public and Private Veterinary Services and a technical consultation, also in 1997, on the same subject with reference to Africa. Under the Regular Programme, countries have also been given technical advisory assistance on the reorganization of structures and working arrangements for veterinary services, particularly in Jordan (through a DFID-funded project), Azerbaijan (through a World Bank-funded project) and Afghanistan (through a UNDP-funded project).
83. In the past, the improvement of public veterinary services was an important area of FAO's animal health work, and included the backstopping of institution-building projects. The recent trend towards the privatization of clinical veterinary services has meant that very little of this type of work is now undertaken owing to the emphasis on normative activities and the lack of demand for support to public institution-building projects. Veterinary services work has changed, and the funds directed to this part of the animal health programme have been curtailed. It is estimated that perhaps only US$ 30 000 per year of non-staff Regular Programme funds are now directed to improving public veterinary services.
84. Nine of the TCP projects that were evaluated by missions were in areas of the FAO animal health programme that are not covered by EMPRES. Of these, three dealt with parasite control, two were on tsetse and trypanosomiasis, two on the participatory delivery of livestock services, one on the expansion of poultry vaccine production, and one on rabbit husbandry.
Table 6: Summary of the performance of individual non-EMPRES TCP projects in animal health
Project number |
Project title |
Rating | ||||
Relevance |
Design |
Implemen |
Results |
Impact | ||
TCP/KEN/8822 |
Parasite control |
2 |
2 |
1 |
2 |
1 |
TCP/SAF/4551 |
Tsetse control |
3 |
3 |
3 |
3 |
3 |
TCP/SAF/8821 |
Parasite control |
3 |
2 |
2 |
3 |
2 |
TCP/BEN/6714 |
Rabbit hemorrhagic disease |
1 |
2 |
1 |
1 |
3 |
TCP/MLI/4553 |
Tsetse and trypanosomiasis control |
2 |
1 |
2 |
1 |
1 |
TCP/EGY/4554 |
Poultry vaccines |
3 |
2 |
2 |
1 |
1 |
TCP/AFG/4553 |
Farmer participation - PIHAM |
2 |
2 |
3 |
2 |
2 |
TCP/LAO/8821 |
Farmer participation - APHIM |
1 |
2 |
2 |
1 |
2 |
TCP/VIE/4451 |
Parasite control |
2 |
1 |
1 |
1 |
1 |
Average scores |
2.11 |
1.89 |
1.89 |
1.67 |
1.78 | |
85. Some of the individual projects scored well overall: the parasite and tsetse projects in South Africa and the PIHAM project in Afghanistan, for example. However, evaluation missions on the whole gave the non-EMPRES projects considerably lower scores than they gave to those dealing with EMPRES topics. One of the chief problems with the parasite and tsetse projects was that the statutory two-year limitation on TCP projects was too short to bring the work to a logical conclusion. The projects in South Africa were successful because government interest and follow-up were assured, while in Kenya, Mali and Viet Nam this was not the case. The project for poultry vaccine production in Egypt did not take account of existing constraints and national expectations, which should have directed a different approach from the equipment upgrading that was planned. The improvement of extension through the animal health and production improvement modules (used in Afghanistan and the Lao People's Democratic Republic) was questioned on the grounds of cost and replicability. Successful interventions in controlling livestock disease were expected in circumstances in which operators' technical skills were severely limiting. The approach addressed livestock production and husbandry issues better than it did veterinary ones.
86. Another important factor explaining the difference between EMPRES and non-EMPRES projects is the degree of government interest and support. Since the EMPRES projects were tied to actual or threatened outbreaks of disease, there was strong government commitment to succeed. This was far less the case for the non-EMPRES projects, some of which appear to have been promoted by FAO technical officers. The non-EMPRES projects also tended to have more imprecise and overly ambitious objectives, compared with what could be achieved with the time and resources available.
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10 The date of the First Consultation of Experts on Ticks and Tick-Borne Diseases they Transmit.
11 This work is being delineated under two technical projects in the 2002-2003 biennium: 213A6 (Veterinary Public Health Management and Food and Feed Safety), and 213A8 (Technologies and Systems for Efficient Natural Resource Use in Livestock Production).
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