One Health in Mongolia

The Asia Pacific Strategy for Emerging Diseases (APSED) requires collaboration, consensus, and partnership across all the different actors and sectors involved in different aspects of emerging disease. Guided by APSED, Mongolia has established a functional coordination mechanism between the animal and human health sectors. Surveillance, information exchange and risk assessment, risk reduction, and coordinated response capacity and collaborative research have been identified as the four pillars of the zoonoses framework. Intersectoral collaboration has been clearly shown to be a crucial tool in the prevention and control of emerging zoonotic diseases. A “One Health” strategy has been implemented under the concept of ‘Healthy animal-Healthy food-Healthy people’. An intersectoral coordination mechanism established between the veterinary and public health sectors has expanded its function to incorporate more work on food safety, emergency management, and effects of climate change on zoonotic diseases. Its membership includes the human health sector, the veterinary sector, the national emergency management agency, the environment sector, emergency management and inspection authorities, and the World Health Organization (WHO). The main outputs of the coordination mechanism have been strengthened surveillance and response activities and laboratory capacities. The coordination mechanism has also strengthened the surveillance and response capacity of neglected zoonotic diseases, such as brucellosis, anthrax, and tick-borne diseases. Through regular meetings and brainstorming sessions, both sectors have developed joint operational plans, a long-term risk reduction plan 2011–2015, initiated a prioritization exercise and risk assessment for 29 zoonotic diseases, and reviewed and revised standards, procedures, and communication strategies. In 2011, a list of experts on major zoonoses were identified from different sectors and formed into a taskforce to identify the focal points for rabies, brucellosis, and vector-borne diseases. As a result, disease control strategies are now linked to scientific research and epidemiological expertise.