Astana, Kazakhstan | 2 September 2026 – The Islamic Organisation for Food Security (IOFS), in cooperation with the World Organisation for Animal Health (WOAH) and the Istituto Zooprofilattico Sperimentale delle Venezie (IZSVe), organised the webinar “Aquatic Animal Health: Strengthening National Capacities for Sustainable Aquaculture.”
The technical programme covered the WOAH Global Strategy for Aquatic Animal Health, disease prevention and diagnostics, major viral and bacterial pathogens, antimicrobial use, zoonotic diseases, aquatic animal welfare, and international cooperation in support of sustainable aquaculture.
Speaking on behalf of IOFS, Dr. Memduh Unal, Director of Programmes, emphasized the close connection between aquaculture and sustainable food security. He noted that aquaculture can be particularly relevant for landlocked countries, including many IOFS Member States, as they seek diversified and sustainable sources of protein.
Dr. Unal stressed that increasing production alone is not sufficient. Sustainable aquaculture requires healthy aquatic animals, effective disease control, reliable laboratory capacity, strong biosecurity measures and well-trained specialists. In this context, he highlighted the importance of the technical expertise of WOAH and IZSVe in supporting the needs of Member States.
A key focus of the webinar was to better understand the practical needs of participating countries. Prior to the event, a survey was shared with participants to identify national priorities and capacity gaps, while the webinar itself provided an opportunity for countries to further highlight areas where support is most needed.
The webinar therefore served not only as a platform for technical knowledge exchange, but also as an important step toward identifying concrete areas for future cooperation in aquatic animal health and sustainable aquaculture.
