Lahore: A report by Action for Animal Health revealed that 75 percent of new and emerging infectious diseases originate from animals. Emphasis has been placed on capacity building.
Dare Brock, who works on the health of working animals around the world, including Pakistan, has released a report which states that there is a global imbalance in animal health services in Pakistan. Pakistan’s animal population is estimated at 1 billion compared to the UK’s 131 million, but Pakistan has half the number of registered veterinarians as the UK.
Animal health services are essential not only for public health but also for the economic development of the country. More than 80 lakh rural families are engaged in herding profession from which they earn more than 35-40% of their household income. But in Pakistan, only one veterinary doctor is available to check the health of 100,000 cattle.
Dr. Javed Gondal, program manager of Brock Pakistan, says that improving animal health and welfare is critical to sustainable development and poverty reduction in Pakistan. We believe that the recommendations in the ‘Action for Animal Health’ policy brief can play an important role in achieving these goals.
An estimated 60 percent of old and 75 percent of new or emerging infectious diseases are transmitted by animals, says Dr. Clara, director of the Animal Welfare Alliance and head of global animal health, welfare, community development, and research at Brock, Animal Health. Underinvestment in the sector has led to shortages of veterinary manpower, shortages of drugs and vaccines, and gaps in disease surveillance.
Recommendations presented in the report state that more attention needs to be paid to the integration of preventive veterinary medicine, herd health, and complementary and alternative veterinary medicine into the animal health education curriculum. The quality of education is looked at in colleges and universities, but there is no quality control mechanism in the private sector after qualification.
The Drug Regulatory Authority of Pakistan was established to regulate the manufacture, import, export, storage, distribution and sale of human and animal health drugs and vaccines, but oversight systems remain flawed.
Pakistan lacks a comprehensive animal disease surveillance system, with most disease surveillance data collected at the provincial level using paper formats, which hinders rapid data collection and sharing and Inhibits proper response.
The report states that to address global health threats, Pakistan must strengthen animal health services, including animal health education, institutions, workforce, surveillance, quality and control of vaccines and drugs.
This starts with developing an appropriate legislative and regulatory framework, along with policies to promote it. Better communication and data sharing across one health sector is essential.
The report recommends that communities should be involved in measures related to animal welfare, disease prevention, surveillance and control.
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