Marc Trotman from Veterinary Services of Barbados and Member of the CaribVET Steering Committee, Avian Influenza and Epidemiology working group attended the conference.

The 23rd Conference of the World Organisation for Animal Health’s (OIE) Regional Commission for the Americas, whose composition totals 30 members, was held in Santa Cruz de la Sierra, Bolivia, from 14 to 18 November 2016. 

The event gathered national Delegates and/or their representatives of 20 Member Countries of the OIE Regional Commission for the Americas, the President of the OIE and several high level representatives of the OIE Headquarters and the OIE Regional Representation for the Americas. Representatives of international and regional organisations involved in animal and veterinary public health activities in the region and numerous observers and experts also participated in the event.

The Conference was the occasion to discuss on issues relevant to the region. As a result, plenary presentations on the necessary relationship among the various institutional actors, group sessions and panel discussions triggered an important dynamic for this important institutional event.

Participants were also provided with detailed information, analyses, and trends on the diseases of greatest concern in the Americas, gathered through the OIE World Animal Health Information System (WAHIS), namely glanders, classical swine fever, foot-and-mouth disease, rabies, highly-pathogenic avian influenza, and small hive beetle infestation.