Veterinarians prepare to fight agroterrorism
Agroterrorism and agrocriminality are real threats that can cause animal health emergencies at a global level. To guard against possible attacks of this type, the World Organization for Animal Health (OIE) is cooperating with the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) and Interpol in an international project that began to take shape in October of 2018.
The project focuses on regions where the previous work of the three organizations has identified gaps in various aspects related to emergency management that can make countries vulnerable to agroterrorism and agribusiness.
The selected regions are the Middle East, North Africa and Southeast Asia, although their results will be relevant for all countries in the world.
The world situation is being assessed
At this time, and in order to ensure that the capacities created are adequate for the purposes pursued, the world situation in terms of emergency management is being evaluated in several aspects:
- identifying areas that are vulnerable to agroterrorism and agribusiness.
- analyzing the cost-effectiveness of investment in preparation.
- using OIE, FAO and Interpol tools to examine emergency management, including the relationship between law enforcement authorities and the veterinary sector.
Based on this information, tools, workshops and simulation exercises are being designed and piloted in the selected regions.
The training will include workshops on the principles of emergency management, which will analyze:
- how to design, implement and learn from a drill exercise.
- how to write a contingency plan.
- how to manage and control the situation during an agroterrorism episode.
To test national and regional capacities, theoretical mock exercises will be carried out based on hypothetical cases of agroterrorism or agrocriminality. All activities will have participants from both the law enforcement authorities and the veterinary sector.
These activities will culminate in an international simulation exercise that will serve to test coordination and communication at the national level (of the selected countries), as well as at the regional and international levels. The exercise will be designed around responding to a hypothetical case of agroterrorism that will require the cooperation of law enforcement authorities and the veterinary sector.
World Conference on Emergency Management
Finally, at the end of the project, a global conference on emergency management will be held to show the activities carried out to a broad multisectoral and interdisciplinary audience.
Project partners hope to enlist the support of the international community to:
- adopt an approach to animal health emergencies that takes into account all hazards.
- promote the inclusion of Veterinary Services in pan-governmental emergency and disaster management frameworks by improving coordination between law enforcement authorities and the veterinary sector.
- and fostering a stronger international emergency management network.
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