The Office International des Epizooties (OIE) was created through the international agreement in 1924 in recognition of the need to fight animal diseases at a global level. In May 2003 the Office became the World Organisation for Animal Health but kept its historical acronym OIE. The OIE is the intergovernmental organisation responsible for improving animal health worldwide and is recognised as a reference organisation by the World Trade Organization (WTO). In 2011 OIE had a total of 178 Member Countries. OIE has partnered with AU-IBAR for the implementation of PARC, PACE, SOLICEP, Vet-Gov, PAN-SPSO and IRCM.