Presentation

More than two-thirds of emerging diseases and almost all known pandemics are caused by pathogens of animal origin. The risk of these pandemics has increased over the last 30 years, with an increase in the number and frequency of emergence of these zoonotic diseases in all regions of the world. In the countries most affected by these zoonotic diseases, the stakes are high, as preventing emergence would cost 100 times less than trying to control them and deal with the consequences of a pandemic such as Covid19 , which is still ongoing. Pandemic surveillance and preparedness systems have been in place around the world for the past 20 years, based on the One Health approach. However, these systems proved to be ineffective during the emergence of SARSCov2 and the “One Health” concept is still too theoretical, despite several concrete initiatives in the field, both at the local (participatory, community-based surveillance) and global (big data, epidemic intelligence) levels.

Experience shows that, when they are co-constructed and applied in a participatory manner by local communities and decision-makers, prevention mechanisms (reduction of risk practices, early warning systems, etc.) are effective. To prevent future pandemics, international collaboration in both research and prevention actions in the field is essential. The co-construction of this type of collective action at local and international levels is essential to ensure adherence, synergy and optimisation of the use of resources for the concrete prevention of pandemic risks in the long term.

Co-construction at all levels must be integrated into our development practices in order to respond effectively and sustainably to global health issues.

The objective of this session is to highlight the importance of co-construction to ensure the relevance, adoption and impact of development actions – around the One Health issue.