The United
States Agency for International Development (USAID) has announced further $87
million, about N17.33 billion to combat
pandemic animal disease threats in Asia, Africa and the Middle East, reports NaijaAgroNet.
.
The funding which backs the Food and
Agricultural Organisation (FAO) efforts to combat global animal disease, covers
the 2015-19 period and is expected be channeled into monitoring and
surveillance, epidemiological studies, prevention and control activities as
well as improving veterinary capacities in Asia, Africa and the Middle East and
promoting links between animal health specialists and the public health sector.
FAO Director-General José Graziano da Silva, NaijaAgroNet gathered, thanked the U.S. for its support and longstanding partnership.
FAO Director-General José Graziano da Silva, NaijaAgroNet gathered, thanked the U.S. for its support and longstanding partnership.
"This shows how important
transboundary diseases are for FAO and the UN system, and how much more
important they will be in the future if we want to achieve the Sustainable Development
Goals. Millions of people rely on livestock for survival, income and nutrition,
and their livelihoods must be protected," he said.
The Director, Global Health Security
and Development with USAID's Bureau for Global Health, Dennis Carroll, said:
"We are pleased by what our partnership with FAO for emerging pandemic
threats has so far achieved, and the important contribution FAO's work is
making to the U.S. Global Health Security Agenda programme to address threats
posed by the natural emergence of new diseases and the intentional and/or
accidental release of dangerous pathogens.
The latest USAID contribution of $87
million to FAO, NaijaAgroNet learnt,
will further strengthen the programme and partnership between our two
organizations, and build upon the good work already underway in the second
phase of the USAID Emerging Pandemic Threats program (EPT-2).
Nearly $50 million of this contribution will
support the global fight against the Ebola virus by building global capacity to
prevent, detect, and respond to future outbreaks and prevent them from becoming
epidemics."
Cyriacus Nnaji/ED,OPs
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