fao activities relevant to veterinary legislation: fao assistance in drafting

Animal Production and Health Division

Development Law Service (LEGN) Legal Office

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• Dr Abdoulaye Bouna Niang

1949 - 2010• Toute l’équipe de FAO présente ses condoléances

émues à sa famille, ses collaborateurs et amis.

• Prions pour que son âme repose éternellement en PAIX dans la terre de ses ancêtres au Sénégal.

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Overview

• Setting the global scene

• International framework

• Areas of relevance for animal legislation

• The FAO assistance to prepare legislation on animal health

• General principles of legal assistance



• The livestock sector has been undergoing change at an unprecedented pace.

• Demand for animal-source food growing rapidly.

• Estimated human population 2050– 9 billion

• Demand for food of animal origin – Estimated needs by 50%

Setting the Scene



• Increase in production?• Increase in efficiency• Impact on rural and peri-urban areas and the

environment• Animal health and poverty alleviation• Animal diseases impact on efficient production and use

of resources– Estimate efficiency losses 25-33%

• ... Trade restrictions

Setting the Scene


Development Law Service (LEGN) Legal OfficeRapid industrialization

Low development Slow industrialization

Post-industrial

Human health

Livelihoods

EnvironmentFood

security

Balancing objectives

State of Food and Agriculture 2009



ANIMAL DISEASES

Economic risks

Productivity

markets

Livelihoods

Human health

pandemic threats

endemic disease

food-borne illness

Human well-beingState of Food and Agriculture 2009



1. Eradicate extreme poverty and hunger

2. Achieve universal primary education

3. Promote gender equality and empower women

4. Reduce child mortality

5. Improve maternal health

6. Combat HIV/AIDS and other diseases

7. Ensure environmental sustainability

8. Global partnership for development

Millennium Development GoalsMillennium Development Goals



Veterinary legislation and international responsibilities of the veterinary authorities

• Country disease status and timely international/regional reporting• Contingency and Emergency plans / biosecurity• National campaigns • Food/consumer safety• Production and Animal Feed quality• Biologicals (National production and importation)• Contribution to academic curriculum (Ministries of Education) and

aspects of professional conduct or continuing education

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Veterinary legislation and international responsibilities of the veterinary authorities

• Animal welfare is principally of the purview of VS yet other interests may also be valid and need to be considered.

• International agreements ...– Biological and Toxin Weapons Convention (BTWC;

www.opbw.org)– Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of

Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES; www.cites.org/)

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Tripartite Position Paper April 2010



• FAO Multi-professional collaboration

• Animal Production and Health Division (AGAH)• Food Safety and Quality Division (AGN)

• Codex Alimentarius Secretariat

• Natural Resources Division (NR)

Development Law Service (Legal Office)

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Holistic, coordinated approaches

Agriculture and

Consumer Protection

Technical Cooperation Department

ForestryFisheries

Natural Resources Management and

Environment

Economic and Social

Development

• Animal Health (including Fisheries)

• Plant Health (including Forestry)

• Food Safety



FAO legal assistance in drafting legislation

30 years of experience for a work in progress....

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FAO’s comparative advantages

VPHVPH

Thematic NetworksThematic NetworksWildlifeWildlife

Legal-AHLegal-AH

Holistic approach to disease prevention and control

RehabilitationRehabilitation

Strategic PlanningStrategic Planning GEMP/Contingency planning GEMP/Contingency planning

Socio-economic and AHSocio-economic and AH



Food Safety

Feed Abattoirs

Meat, dairy, eggs

Veterinary Drugs

FOOD PRODUCTION CHAIN

Natural resources

Wildlife health and

Conservation

CITES

Livestock and Animal Health legal frameworkLegal areas which need considered

Land

Water

Waste

Animal Health Production

Administrative Law



ANIMAL AND FOOD PRODUCTION. A SHARED REGULATORY CHAIN



• Animal Production

• Animal Genetic Resources

• Animal Identification

• Animal Health

• Animal Welfare

• Products of Animal Origin

• Slaughterhouses

• Meat Inspection

• Dairy Sector

• Feed

• Veterinary Drugs

• Veterinarian Profession and Veterinary Paraprofessionals

• Prevention and Control Measures for Specific Diseases

– BSE

– Brucellosis

– Avian Influenza

– Swine Fevers

– Foot and Mouth Disease

FAO Legal Office Work in the Veterinary Arena



Of great importance to FAO’s work is the insight in compiling and analysing legislation across Ministries to identify discrepancies and ensure harmonisation between laws and legislation

congruency

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Methodology for FAO Legal Work

• Collaborative: Suggestions for law reform provided alongside advice from technical experts

• Participatory: stakeholders, to accommodate multiple interests at stake and to foster a sense of ownership in the legislation prepared

• Independent: Disinterested advice drawing on international and comparative experience and based on objective analysis

• Tailor-made: Laws crafted to meet particular needs and concerns of individual countries or specific regions



• FAO experience in assessing countries’ ability to develop national and regional veterinary legislation is extensive

• The importance and investment of this effort includes and extends beyond the offices of the Veterinary Service ... some recent examples ...

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Examples

Animal Health (Iraq, Maldives, Bahamas, Ecuador, Cape Vert, Tajikistan, Azerbaijan...)

• Draft Law on Animal Health/ Implementing regulations• ... And in specific response to H5N1 AI (2004-2007) advice on

Compensation Strategies in > 30 countriesVeterinary Drugs - Mozambique • Draft Veterinary Drugs LawLivestock Identification - Malawi• Draft Legislation on Establishment of Livestock Identification

SystemAnimal Feed• Suriname - Feed Law• APHCA - Implementing a risk-based preventative approach to mitigating

risks associated with feed safety, including the Codex Code of Practice on Good Animal Feeding (CAC/RCP 54 – 2004) with relevant chapters of the OIE Terrestrial and Aquatic Animal Health Codes.

• Meat -Somalia• Draft Law on Meat Inspection and Control



Examples

Veterinary Profession Rwanda• Draft Legislation on the Veterinary Profession

Dairy DevelopmentBarbados• Draft Dairy Development Board Act

Uruguay• Assistance for the revision on Milk and dairy products legislation

Regional Harmonisation• Proposed model regulation on the prevention and control of BSE in Central America• Regional and national legislation on Foot-and-Mouth disease and

approved project to be launched for Classical Swine Fever (Andean Community)



Past/closed projects (20 projects, 15 TCP)

On-going projects (15 projects)

New projects (Pipeline) (3 projects)

LEG Map - FAO LEG-AH projects over the past 5 years

The Development Law Service's legislative assistance projects relating to animals fall into three main categories: animal health, regulation of the veterinary profession, and control of veterinary drugs. FAO has also assisted with other legislation falling under the broad heading of “veterinary matters“



Development Law Service (LEGN)

Legal Office – FAO

Legislative Studies

2005

2007

20101999

2004



Conclusions

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• Legislation is not policy making and cannot substitute policy decisions

• Legislation is necessary to make policy objectives enforceable • Legislation is necessary to set up clear responsibilities and

instruments• International standards (such as the OIE Terrestrial Code or

Codex standards) serve to foster international harmonization (regulatory objectives)

• National legislation should be based on (i) the national legal tradition; (ii) the national legal framework, (iii) the national regulatory objectives.



Conclusions

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• Legal processes should be based on legal analyses and involve multi stakeholders consultations

• Legal processes should incorporate capacity building strategies aimed at laws enactment and implementation

• The FAO has extensive experience in assessing countries’ ability to develop national and regional veterinary legislation – in the context of agriculture/livestock development and trade - to implement international standards (such as the OIE Terrestrial Code and STDF efforts of the WTO)

• This assistance is provided by a combination of technical and legal professionals and through the FAO’s Legal Service network at headquarters and decentralised offices.



Food and source of

protein

Wealth & welfare

Manure / fuel

Social / religious

Hides

Ploughing / transportation

Trade



30http://www.fao.org/legal/advserv/DevLawService.pdf

fao activities relevant to veterinary legislation: fao assistance in drafting

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