ECTAD Asia and the Pacific

Strengthening animal health systems to protect health and livelihoods The Asia and the Pacific region is home to a large portion of the world's population. Meeting the demand for safe food while ensuring the health of our ecosystem is a constant challenge. Globalization coupled with significant changes in climate, land use, livestock production systems and human behaviours increases the risk of disease emergence and spread. Animal health threats Zoonotic diseases such as avian influenza continue to circulate in the region and have the potential to spill over from animals to humans. Non-zoonotic but high-impact transboundary animal diseases such as African swine fever (ASF) pose a serious threat to the livelihoods and food security of about 421 million farmers in the region. Meanwhile, the misuse and overuse of antimicrobials in food producing animals makes antimicrobial resistance (AMR) a growing One Health concern. The Asia-Pacific has become the most impacted region in the world with over 643 thousand human deaths attributed to bacterial AMR in 2019. Our role FAO ECTAD has been working with Member Nations to strengthen the capacities of their animal health sectors since the highly pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI) emerged in the region in 2004. FAO ECTAD continues to support countries to reduce the risk of animal health threats at national, regional and global levels. By building countries capacities to prevent, detect and respond to these threats, FAO ECTAD plays an essential role in protecting the health of people and animals, and safeguarding farmers' livelihoods, economy and food security.