background:
One Health (OH) is an integrated approach that addresses health threats at the interface of humans, animals, plants and the environment. It aims to achieve public health, animal health, food security and sustainable ecosystem management efforts and plays a key role in mitigating emerging health challenges exacerbated by the triple global crisis.
In October 2022, the quadrilateral – the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP), the World Health Organization (WHO) and the World Organisation for Animal Health (WOAH) – launched the One Health Joint Action Plan (OH JPA, 2022-2026), a strategic framework that recognises the interconnectedness of human, animal and ecosystem health and promotes multi-sectoral collaboration and comprehensive solutions through six action tracks, aligned with the 2030 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).
To implement the OH JPA at the national level, an implementation guide was released by the Quadripartite Meeting in November 2023. The guide aims to provide guidance and support to countries interested in adopting and adapting the OH JPA to their national needs, enabling them to strengthen, consolidate and develop activities towards the implementation of the One Health concept.
One Health Seminar 2024:
The European Regional One Health Seminar is a key regional event bringing together representatives of public, animal and environmental health from Europe and Central Asia. The Seminar is jointly organized by FAO, UNEP, WHO and WOAH (members of the European Regional One Health Coordination Mechanism (ROHCM)) under the leadership of WOAH, the European Chair of ROHCM in 2024-25.
The seminar is made possible thanks to financial support from the European Union and a generous contribution from the Ministry of Social Welfare, Health, Care and Consumer Protection of the Republic of Austria.
The seminar aims to discuss and identify opportunities and best practices for operationalizing the One Health approach to address health threats originating from the human-animal-environment interface in Europe and Central Asia, leveraging the OH JPA and its implementation guide. The event is also an opportunity to highlight the central role of the Quadrilateral Meeting in promoting and coordinating the regional One Health approach.
The seminar will enable the discussion of recommendations for integrating One Health concepts into professional curricula and agree on recommendations to Member States for the One Health session at the 31st WHOAH Regional Conference in Uzbekistan and the 74th WHO Europe Regional Committee Session in Copenhagen (to which the Executive Representatives of the European Quadripartite Committees will be invited). The seminar is in line with the global initiative of the Executives of the Quadripartite Committees to organize regional workshops to accelerate the implementation of the OH JPA and its implementation guide.
A parallel meeting of the ROHCM Partners Platform will be held under the umbrella of the European Regional One Health Coordination Mechanism, with the main objective of bringing together partners such as regional organizations, donors, academic institutions and collaborating centers to promote exchanges among One Health partners and discuss upcoming cooperation activities for European and Central Asian member states to advance the implementation of the One Health concept.
the purpose
1. Promote increased collaboration and efforts to translate One Health approaches into policy actions across the region.
2. Increase awareness and understanding of One Health as an approach to addressing health problems arising from the human-animal-environment interface, and promote knowledge exchange and capacity building.
2.1. Examine cases and share best practices for operationalizing the One Health approach in countries in Europe and Central Asia; 2.2. Provide an update on recent strategic developments at global and regional levels, such as the AMR Roadmap, the Budapest Declaration, the Global Biodiversity Framework, and the One Health Joint Action Plan and Implementation Guide;
3. Explore and identify opportunities to strengthen cross-border collaboration to operationalize the One Health approach (e.g. cross-sectoral oversight based on collaboration, data sharing, knowledge exchange and dissemination).
4. Provide information to Member States, the Quadripartite Organizations and partners to integrate the One Health approach into relevant operational priority areas and mobilize resources across sectors.
5.  Stresses the importance of integrating the One Health concept into professional curricula and encourages national authorities to develop activities to implement it, as well as to strengthen cooperation and coordinated efforts between professionals in the fields of human health, animal health and the environment;
Target audience and expected participants:
1. Four partners at global, regional and national levels (FAO, UNEP, WHO, WOAH).
2. Representatives of European and Central Asian Member States: namely representatives of the competent public health, animal health and environmental protection authorities. This may include Ministries of Health, Agriculture, Environment, Food Safety Authorities or other bodies as relevant.
3. Regional and subregional organizations, agencies, collaborating centres, reference laboratories and relevant stakeholders.
