Dr Mark Schipp on Engagement in the Indo-Pacific

Pacific Engagement Program for Animal Health

The Pacific Engagement Program for Animal Health is delivered by my office, and since the program’s inception in August 2021, it has achieved a number of significant milestones.

The program aims to support Pacific Island Countries and Territories (PICTs) to improve biosecurity, animal health and food security outcomes for the region. The program is committed to enhancing the department’s partnerships with Australia’s near neighbours in an effort to strengthen national and regional biosecurity systems, aligning with Australia’s objectives of building stronger partnerships in the Pacific and the strategic objectives of the Commonwealth Biosecurity 2030 Roadmap.

In its first year, the program has established a strong partnership with the Animal Health and Production team of the Pacific Community (SPC), an international development organisation that is the principal scientific and technical organisation in the Pacific region. Two agreements between SPC and the Department of Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry (DAFF) have recently been signed, one to strengthen the Pacific Heads of Veterinary and Production Services (PHOVAPS) Network and to undertake work on African swine fever (ASF) preparedness, and the other to support SPC’s work on One Health projects.

^{(Image: OCVO staff meet with the Fiji Ministry of Agriculture's Animal Health and Production team)}

Through the program, my office has also formed collaborative relationships with colleagues in the Australian Government Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade (DFAT) and the New Zealand Ministry of Primary Industries (MPI).

Expert workshop in Fiji

In August 2022, the department co-convened with SPC a multi-stakeholder workshop on Pacific regional capacity needs to support animal health, welfare and production, veterinary public health, biosecurity and food security.

The workshop was held in Nadi, Fiji, and my office was represented by Program Manager for Pacific engagement, Dr Dan Edson, as well as Dr Peter Thornber, Dr Amber Beavis and Dr Raana Asgar. The officers were joined by colleagues from key bilateral and multilateral bodies, including SPC, the World Organisation for Animal Health (WOAH, formerly OIE), the United Nations Food and Agricultural Organization (FAO), New Zealand MPI, the Biosecurity Authority of Fiji, Biosecurity Vanuatu, the Australian Centre for Disease Preparedness (ACDP) and many more.

The discussions and key learnings from the expert workshop will provide input into the development of a Regional Animal Health Capacity Building Plan. The plan will outline the regional capacity building priorities and the coordinated and collaborative approaches to support animal health and production in the 22 Pacific Island Countries and Territories.

Key areas of focus for the Regional Animal Health Capacity Building Plan include improving veterinary and para-veterinary resources in the region, building disease surveillance and diagnostic testing capacity, and support for smallholder farmers to improve food and income security. In addition, the plan will focus on strengthening disease preparedness and response systems for important transboundary animal diseases such as ASF and foot-and-mouth disease (FMD), and management of stray dog populations to reduce dog attacks on livestock.

Following the expert workshop, a combined DAFF-SPC planning day focused on the co-development of a workplan for partnership activities to be undertaken by PEPAH and SPC in the future.

Relationship building in the Pacific

^{(Image: The OCVO team meet with the Fiji Ministry of Agriculture Permanent Secretary Vinesh Kumar)}

During their visit to Fiji, the PEPAH team also met with in-country government officials, including Mr Vinesh Kumar, Permanent Secretary of the Fiji Ministry of Agriculture, and Ms Susanna Hodson, First Secretary of the Australian High Commission in Suva, as well as staff from key organisations including the Fiji Meat Industry Board, Fiji Cooperative Dairy Company Limited and the Pacific Horticultural and Agricultural Market Access Program (PHAMA Plus).

The trip also included field visits to research stations, abattoirs, the Fiji Veterinary Pathology Lab and the Vunikoka Beef Farm. A meeting with the Women in Dairy group provided the team with the opportunity to speak with local women farmers who are leading change within their communities.

^{(Image: Staff from the Office of the Chief Veterinary Officer meet with the innovative Fiji Dairy Womens group)}

Next steps for the program will be to continue building strong and mutually beneficial bilateral and multilateral partnerships within the Pacific region, continue strengthening the PHOVAPS Network, and continue supporting SPC in activities to improve animal health and biosecurity outcomes.

Relationship building in Papua New Guinea and Timor-Leste

Staying with the theme of relationship-building and supporting animal health and biosecurity for Australia’s near neighbours, the department also provides important support to Papua New Guinea and Timor-Leste, particularly around ASF, FMD and lumpy skin disease (LSD) preparedness activities. In early August 2022, Australian Deputy Chief Veterinary Officer, Dr Beth Cookson, and Dr Jenny Baird, Principal Veterinary Officer with the Biosecurity Animal Division, visited Timor-Leste, with a focus on improving quarantine and border biosecurity outcomes for the country.

Dr Cookson and Dr Baird met with officials from the Timor-Leste Ministry of Agriculture and Fisheries (MAF) and local stakeholders to collaborate on prevention and preparedness activities for FMD, LSD and avian influenza. Another important outcome from the trip was collaboration with the Market Development Facility on Timor-Leste’s public awareness campaign for FMD and LSD, including the delivery of educational and training resources.

Collaboration and establishment of strong partnerships with our near neighbours is a key priority for the Office of the Chief Veterinary Officer and the broader department. By engaging with and building capacity in the region, the department will continue working towards safeguarding Australia from significant offshore biosecurity threats and ensuring that animal health and food security systems in the region are upheld.

For the latest updates on the work of the Office of the Chief Veterinary Officer, please follow my social media channels on LinkedIn and Twitter. Please also follow Australian Deputy Chief Veterinary Officer Dr Beth Cookson on her social media channels on LinkedIn and Twitter.