Baldomero Molina Flores, associated veterinary expert within the FAO/RAHC-NA, and the representatives of the EC Arbozoonet Program, Michele Bouloy (Pasteur Institute, Paris, France), Jabbar Ahmed (Research Center Borstel, Germany) and Catherine Cetre-Sossha (CIRAD), were the technical experts in charge of the scientific committee for the organization of this workshop, with the essential collaboration of Karim Boughalem, Sub-Director of Animal Health at the Veterinary Services of Algeria (MADR). This specific workshop on RVF, has considered a multidisciplinary dimension (virology, entomology, epidemiology…) of this disease, in the framework of the FAO/RAHC-NA initiative for a Mediterranean Animal Health Network (REMESA), which will allow the strengthening of the Veterinary Services capacities in the region as well as the constitution of a Mediterranean network of focal points (laboratories of the Maghreb countries, CIRAD-France, etc.) to reinforce RVF epidemio-surveillance and control.
At the same time, parallel sessions were organized for the update of the most important aspects concerning the High Pathogenic Avian Influenza (HPAI), as well as the FAO/RAHC-NA coordination activities within the framework of the REMESA initiative.
The approach developed for this training workshop was:
1) Pragmatic: learned lessons have to be simple, adapted to the local situation and immediately applicable by participants after finalizing the training workshop.
2) Interactive: between the field and the laboratory, specifically targeted to animal health professionals, from different academic backgrounds and origins, in order to support a multidisciplinary field-team work.
3) Participative: practical cases adapted to real situations will be proposed and discussed with the participants.
Please download the full workshop report here.
