Indonesia Leads Bioinformatics Training for ASEAN Laboratory Personnel
Yogyakarta (25/08) – Indonesia is sharing its expertise on bioinformatics by training laboratory personnel from nine ASEAN countries, 23 Indonesian laboratories, and few other members of the Zoonotic Diseases Action Package (ZDAP) countries, such as Pakistan and Bangladesh. ZDAP is a global collaboration to respond to emerging zoonotic threats and advance the global health security agenda.
In 2021, Disease Investigation Center (DIC) Wates, Yogyakarta was endorsed as the ASEAN Regional Reference Center for Veterinary Bioinformatics from the ASEAN Sectoral Working Group on Livestock (SWGL). With this recognition, DIC Wates has established itself as a laboratory with expertise in bioinformatics and been supporting and advising other laboratories in ASEAN countries on bioinformatics-related issues.
Bioinformatics is an interdisciplinary tool for computing and analysing biological data, including agents with the potential to cause disease in animals, plants, and humans. Using bioinformatics, the characteristics of disease agents can be studied comprehensively that improves the efficiency and effectiveness of disease control.
This workshop is running a series of training sessions designed to increase laboratory personnel's bioinformatics capacity and enable laboratories in ASEAN and ZDAP countries to understand the evolution of specific virus agents to rapidly detect new Emerging Infectious Disease (EID) threats. It is also serving as a platform for participants to share their knowledge and experiences to establish a strong bioinformatics network in the region.
"This workshop is part of Indonesia's commitment to strengthening ASEAN regional mechanisms for the prevention, early detection and control of animal and zoonotic diseases with pandemic potential, as well as strengthening the animal health sector through a One Health approach", said Nuryani Zainuddin, Director of Animal Health, Directorate General of Livestock and Animal Health, Ministry of Agriculture of Indonesia.
Nuryani explained that at this workshop, Indonesia contributes to increasing the capacity and network of laboratories in ASEAN for bioinformatics. "As a leading country in the Global Health Security Agenda and Zoonotic Diseases Action Package (ZDAP), Indonesia also involves and strengthens public and veterinary health laboratories in Indonesia, ASEAN, and ZDAP countries to implement bioinformatics using the One Health approach”, added Nuryani.
"The years of collaboration between FAO and the Government of Indonesia has strengthened the capacity of DICs to enhance the detection and prevention of zoonotic threats. We are delighted to see that the improved knowledge and capacity can be shared with other countries in Southeast Asia,” stated Rajendra Aryal, Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) Representative for Indonesia and Timor Leste, while appreciating this event as a milestone in animal health sector.
Australia’s Ambassador to ASEAN, H.E. Will Nankervis said, “Australia is very pleased to be supporting this bioinformatics workshop through our SMART-ASEAN partnerships with ASEAN and FAO. The workshop, together with the designation of the Disease Investigation Centre Wates as the ASEAN Regional Reference Centre for Bioinformatics, are important steps in ensuring a coordinated response to disease threats in ASEAN.”
As noted by USAID Indonesia’s Acting Health Office Director, David Stanton “the elevation of the Disease Investigation Center Wates as an ASEAN Regional Reference Center for Bioinformatics builds on decades of exemplary service and is a testament to the amazing work of the highly skilled DIC staff and Ministry of Agriculture teams. USAID is proud to work with the Ministry of Agriculture and FAO to support this work.”
Since 2006, FAO with the support of the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) has been working closely with the Government of Indonesia to provide the DICs with comprehensive training on laboratory biosafety and security, quality assurance, risk mitigation and procedures standardization. This initiative on bioinformatics is co-funded by USAID and the Government of Australia through FAO-Australia-ASEAN joint project on Strengthening Mechanism in Animal Health (SMART-ASEAN).