Advancing One Health with USAID and Walter Reed Army Institute of Research
Washington, DC –Today, the FAO Liaison Office for North America held an interagency meeting with colleagues at the US Agency for International Development (USAID) and the Walter Reed Army Institute of Research (WRAIR) to discuss their respective work on One Health. One Health is an integrated, unifying approach that aims to sustainably balance and optimize the health of people, animals, and ecosystems.
During the session, Jocelyn BrownHall, Director of the FAO Liaison Office for North America, and Katrin Taylor, Programme Officer of Partnerships and One Health, provided an overview of the FAO’s work on One Health.
FAO promotes a One Health approach as part of agrifood systems transformation for the health of people, animals, plants and the environment. Ensuring a One Health approach is essential for progress to anticipate, prevent, detect and control diseases that spread between animals and humans, tackle AMR, ensure food safety and to prevent environment-related human and animal health threats. FAO works with partners to promote health systemically, in particular, through the Health Joint Plan of Action (OH JPA) driven by the Quadripartite which includes FAO, the United Nations EnvironmentProgramme (UNEP), the World Health Organization (WHO) and the WorldOrganisation for Animal Health (WOAH).
The United States is a strong partner of FAO’s work on One Health and supports up to 50 projects worth over $250 million USD, while also providing funds to support FAO Emergency Centre for Transboundary Animal Diseases (ECTAD) in over 35 countries.
During the session, MAJ Thierry Lamare, Associate Director of the One Health Branch (OHB) at the Walter Reed Army Institute of Research shared that his Branch was established in March 2021 to build capacity for One Health and engages in education, training and emergency response efforts globally. Also joining from WRAIR, Robert Nelson, Program Manager, Overseas Operations, who shared the Institute’s work on the ground with partners to help countries respond to One Health issues noting that the Department of Defense will transition its medical facility to the Defense Health Agency.
From USAID Tashiana Osborne, Climate Change Advisor, shared the central role that One Health plays across the Agency's climate strategy and the PREPARE Act. USAID is working on a few projects in Africa to make funding available for early warning systems, and to promote climate adaptation and climate-smart agriculture. Rainer Asse, Agriculture Advisor also joined the session remotely and underlined the importance of building critical network sectors to address the transdisciplinary issue of One Health.
The introductory meeting provided an overview of the agencies' work across health, climate, and agriculture, and identified potential areas for collaboration and engagement, as well as the need to engage broader agencies working in the same area, particularly at the country level.
Learn more about FAO’s work on One Health