• Theme: Animal Health Delivery

In the delivery of animal health, there is a broad continuum from goods with a large degree of externalities, such as sanitary control, to pure private goods, such as individual clinical treatments.

In addition to the delivery of animal health there is the need to establish a credible official veterinary infrastructure capable of providing sanitary certification for exports and for establishment of disease free zones. Clear choices on the distribution of public and private responsibilities, both in funding and control are therefore required.

However, both at the national and international levels, a wide range of opinions exists regarding the most appropriate roles for the public sector, ranging from demands for strongly increased roles and funding for the public sector to a much more aggressive transfer of responsibilities to private operators.

More balanced and pragmatic approaches, promoting a tripartite partnership between the public, the private and the associative sectors to ensure that the fundamental functions of animal diseases control and animal health delivery are covered with the best possible cost/efficiency ratio, need to be developed. This would have to take place in the framework of the OIE standards.