From the left to the right : a) Dr Mohammed Bengoumi (FAO sub-regional office for the Maghreb region), b) His Excellency Mr Lassaad Lachaal, the Minister of Agriculture of Tunisia, c) Dr Rachid Bouguedour (OIE Sub-Regional Representative for North Africa) and d) Dr Joseph Domenech (OIE Headquarters)
The OIE Sub Regional Representation for North Africa organised a meeting in Tunis on 10 and 11 September 2014 about the FMD epidemic occurring in 2014 in the North African Region.
The meeting was held at the OIE Sub Regional Representation for North Africa and it was chaired by Dr Rachid Bouguedour (OIE Sub-Regional Representative for North Africa) who welcomed all the participants and, in particular, the Chief Veterinary Officers from Algeria, Libya, Morocco and Tunisia who attended the meeting. An expert from OIE Headquarters, Dr Joseph Domenech participated in the meeting by delivering a presentation about the OIE tools currently in place to fight against FMD.
Representatives from European Commission also joined the meeting as well as experts from the OIE Reference Laboratory for FMD based at the “Istituto Zooprofilattico Sperimentale della Lombardia e della Emilia Romagna” (IZSLER Brescia, Italy). The OIE Reference Laboratory presented the analysis of results of the samples received from the countries of the Maghreb region. Representatives from EuFMD and FAO sub-regional office for the Maghreb region in Tunis were invited as well. The Animal Health Laboratory – based within the French Agency for Food, Environmental and Occupational Health & Safety (ANSES, Paris) also illustrated their FMD activities in North Africa FMD.
Dr Alessandro Ripani (programme officer at the OIE Sub-Regional Representation for North Africa) delivered a presentation on the opportunity and interest for establishing a regional vaccines bank in North Africa showing the OIE experience in this field and the related benefits obtained by the regions that already implemented the OIE vaccine banks.
The objectives of the meeting were i) to update the participants on the evolution of FMD in the affected countries (Algeria, Tunisia and Libya); ii) to share all the relevant information pertinent to the vaccination strategy between countries in order to mitigating the spreading of the disease; iii) to discuss the current and future sanitary control measures to stop the spread of the disease in the region.
The first day, 10 September 2014, His Excellency Mr Lassaad Lachaal, the Minister of Agriculture of Tunisia, met all the participants in his Ministry for a welcome speech. The Minister took the opportunity to thank the OIE for organising this meeting and for providing a continuous support to the countries. He also thanked the European Commission for the support given to Tunisia as well as the OIE Reference Laboratory for FMD (IZSLER Brescia, Italy) for the valuable expertise provided.
