The 10th Pan African meeting of Africa's CVOs and OIE delegates to develop coordinated position on animal health standards was held from 23rd to 26th April 2017 in Nairobi, Kenya. The meeting was officially opened by Dr. Obadiah Njagi, Director of Veterinary Services and Chief Veterinary Officer for Kenya, on behalf of the Kenyan Government. There were opening remarks from Prof Ahmed Elsawalhy, Director of AU-IBAR; Mr. Njuru Mwangi, Representative of the European Union Delegation in Kenya; and Mr. Vipya Harawa, Clerk of Pan African Parliament.
The meeting was co-chaired by Dr. Baboucarr Jaw, Chief Animal Health Officer at AU-IBAR and Dr. Michael Modisane, CVO of South Africa and President of the OIE, whose tenure as President of OIE ends after the 86th General Session of the World Assembly of OIE Delegates, having served a three year term. The Pan African CVOs/OIE Delegates meeting is a meeting for African CVOs, Directors of Veterinary Services and OIE Delegates. The meeting was attended by delegates from 41 African countries, and Representatives from SADC, UMA, ECCAS, IGAD, EU, USDA, FAO, and OIE.
The main outcome of the meeting was the adoption of African common positions on draft OIE Chapters scheduled for adoption at the 86th General Session of the World Assembly of OIE Delegates which will be held in Paris, France from 20th to 25th May 2018.
Partnership meetings were also held between African Union Member States, Representatives of the European Union and the United States Department of Agriculture to foster dialogue and information sharing on draft Chapters of OIE with the view to facilitating the adoption of these standards during the 86th OIE General Session.
Other issues discussed during the meeting included:
- AU-IBAR Strategic Plan 2018 to 2023
- Mechanisms for improving national consultations on OIE draft standards
- Animal Health Strategy for Africa
- Partnership between AU-IBAR and OIE on PVS self-evaluation
- Partnership between AU-IBAR and FAO on field epidemiology training for veterinarian (FETPV)
- Post Rinderpest contingency plan for Africa
- Animal Resource Information System 3
The meeting was organized jointly by the EU sponsored project "Live2Africa Programme" and the Standards and Trade Secretariat (STS) of AU-IBAR.