The meeting is attended by representatives from ASEAN member states, ASEAN Secretariat, as well as FAO Regional Office for Asia and Pacific.
ACCAHZ is the manifestation of ASEAN`s commitment to protect the health of people and animals, the ministry`s Director General for Livestock and Animal Health I, Ketut Diarmita, stated in a press release on Thursday.
The coordinating center, according to him, must ensure the speed in responding to incidents related to cases of animal diseases and zoonoses, especially cross-border animal diseases in the ASEAN region.
The establishment of ACCAHZ has been initiated since 2012 by the signing of a cooperation agreement by all agriculture ministers of ASEAN member countries in Singapore.
Following the signing of the agreement, further regulation on technical matters, such as procedural arrangements, host country agreements, budgetary deposits, financial arrangements, and governing board arrangements, as a decision maker within the framework of ACCAHZ, will be required.
Diarmita stressed that as well as inter-state agreements, the ASEAN agreement, through ACCAHZ, aims at enhancing mutually beneficial technical and trade cooperation with good commitment, planning, and implementation.
Indonesia maintains a status free of animal diseases, , such as foot and mouth disease, mad cow disease, and rinderpest disease, which is deemed strategic by the OIE-World Organization for Animal Health.
Such a measure has put additional value for Indonesia in its disease control efforts and animal product safety assurance in the ASEAN region, so as to ensure and facilitate the process of exporting animals and its products to other countries in the region.
Currently, Indonesia exports processed poultry products, eggs, and animal medicines to ASEAN countries.
Through various international and regional opportunities, Indonesia consistently provides information related to animal health and safety guarantee, as well as products to be exported to penetrate and ease trade barriers.
"At this time, animal health issues and animal product security issues have become important issues in international trade. They often become a barrier in penetrating the global market," Diarmita revealed.
Reported by Muhammad Razi Rahman
(Y013/INE)
(T.Y013/A/KR-BSR/F001)
Reporter: antara
Editor: Heru Purwanto
Copyright © ANTARA 2018
