OIE/FAO-APHCA/DLD Consultation Meeting on Bovine Spongiform Encephalopathy (BSE) Public Awareness
(Chiang Mai, Thailand, 13-14 October 2003)
The Consultation Meeting on BSE Public Awareness was jointly organised by OIE, FAO/APHCA (Animal Production and Health Commission for Asia and the Pacific) and Department of Livestock Development, Thailand (DLD) in collaboration with the Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, Chiang Mai University, Thailand in order to develop public awareness regarding BSE.
The Consultation Meeting was attended by eight participants. They were national participants from the countries where activities of BSE diagnosis and surveillance have started to a certain extent and experienced in BSE matters (Dr Sharifah Syed Hassain from Malaysia, Dr Victor Atienza from the Philippines and Dr Chaweewan Lewijuk fromThailand), resource persons (Prof. Ulrich Kihm and Dr Elizabeth Mumford from Safe Food Solution Inc (SAFOSO) in Switzerland), the meeting organisers (Dr Vishnu Songkitti from FAO/APHCA-RAP based in Bangkok and Dr Teruhide Fujita and Dr Yoshiyuki Oketani from the OIE Regional Representation for Asia and the Pacific based in Tokyo).
The meeting discussed public awareness including (i) why public awareness is important, (ii) to whom the pamphlets/leaflets should be addressed (to policy makers or to Veterinary Services or to consumers) and (iii) what types of information and what specific information need to be delivered.
All the participants agreed on the necessity of public awareness to all levels of people. For example, the pamphlets/leaflets for policy makers aim at facilitating legislation/funding of measures, for veterinary services understanding the basis for implementation of various BSE programmes, and for consumers understanding what BSE is and what is safe.
After the discussion, the meeting agreed that Veterinary Services are the most important target who should receive general and specific scientific information on BSE, but policy makers and consumers are also important who should be informed about well-summarised general information. The pamphlets/leaflets should cover the basic information that is common and useful in the region and each country could add necessary information when they use them as educational materials.
The Consultation Meeting drafted four different types of model information papers for public awareness (PDF). It is considered necessary that those papers be submitted and explained, for their information and authorisation where applicable, to the 23rd Conference of the OIE Regional Commission for Asia, the Far East and Oceania to be held in New Caledonia in November 2003. The model information papers for BSE public awareness will be modified and translated into local languages in the respective countries in the Region, where appropriate.