Appendix 22 - Agenda point on the Constitution of the EUFMD Commission

74th Session of the EUFMD Executive Committee

Aide-memoire

Agenda point on the Constitution of the EUFMD Commission Appe ndi x 22

Background

T he EUFMD Commission is a body established unde r Articl e XI V o f th e FAO Basic T exts (2006 upd ate, Volume II, Chapter R; http://www. fao. org/docr ep/009/j8038e/j8038e18. htm#P7_2). T hese bodies ar e established by conventions or ag reem ents approved by th e Confer enc e or the Council on the basis o f a propos al by a techni cal me eting or con fer enc e and re fer red to M ember Nations con cern ed fo r a cc eptanc e. T erms o f re feren ce, rules o f pro cedu re and amendm ents ar e app roved by th e Parties as provided for in the convention o r agre ement. T he purpose, membership and functions of such bodies a re desc ribed in their Constitution, and acceptanc e o f the Constitution provides the basis for Nations to join the Commission and contribute to its Governance and suc cess. Subsidiary texts specifi c to the EUFMD Commission are the Rules of p roc edure, and Financi al Regulations. Changes to the Constitution of the EUFMD Commission (see: Article XIV o f the EUFMD Constitution) require a two thirds majority in favour at the Gen er al Session (currently held biennially), and requi re r atifi cation by the FAO Council at its following Session. Changes to the Rules of Procedu re and Financial Regulations do not require r atifi cation by the FAO Council.

T he last revision to the Constitution was ten years ago, in 1997.

A “ 10 year periodic revi ew” ” o f the Constitution is therefo re justifi ed to ensure that the document ret ains its relevan ce to the cu rr ent requir ements and status o f the member countries, and in relation to the strategi c programme o f the Commission adopted at its General Sessions.

Summary A fter 10 ye ars, ther e is a n eed for the Ex ecutive, and possibly the G ene ral Session, to r eview th e Constitution and consider if any ch ange would be bene fi cial.

Although no chang e to the Constitution is essential to the und ertak e the actions ag re ed in the Strat egic Plan o f the Commission for 2005-8, as agr eed by the 2005 G ener al Session (36th Session), some amendments or additions to the Articles on Functions (IV and V) may be app ropriat e to keep the Constitution and work programme in alignment.

T he issue of partnership with non-member count ries in the European neighbourhood and elsewhe re that hav e similar aims in FMD control, and the issue of their possible membership should be discussed at the 74th Executive.

Issues

1. Geographical scope of actions

1. a. FMD risk from endemic countries : threat detection and response

T he 36th Session in 2005 adopted a Strategy Paper with five main thrusts of action for the period 2005-8, which included mandating the Executive/Secret ariat to develop projects and implement actions to achieve an ”Improved system fo r monitoring FMD virus circulation”” . In response the Secretari at, with EC assistance via the T rust Fund, has supported FMD sample submission from outbreaks in Iran, Egypt, East Afri ca (Sudan, Kenya) and w est Africa (Nig er). T his support has been valuable but in the face o f constant virus evolution, a move to a more active monitoring approach with partners in the endemic regions is needed.

Incursions of exotic FMDV into Egypt and T urkey in 2006 were discussed in the 73rd Executive, highlighting the lack of in formation from endemic regions on circulating strains to inform risk assessment and preventive

actions, and the need for international action to support early detection of thre at agents. Since the source of FMD fo r Europe is almost entirely outside of the EUFMD member countries, the question of whether the Constitution limits the scope of EUFMD actions was raised.

Assessment

It can b e argu ed that a number o f the fun ctions of the Commission are not restri cted to member countries only, since in Articles IV and V the scope is not limited to member countries except where speci fi ed.

Regarding epidemiological in formation gath ering and communication in non-Europ ean count ries, it can be argued these a re cove red by :,

Article IV, points:

1. 2 comprehensive information on outbreaks of the disease and identification of virus is collected and disseminated as quickly as possible;

2. T o collect information on national programmes for control of and r esea rch on, foot-and-mouth disease.

9. T o enter into arrangements, through the Director-General o f the Org anization, with other organizations, regional groups or with Nations not Members of the Commission, for participation in the work of the Commission or its committees, or for mutual assistance on problems of controlling foot-and-mouth disease. T hese arrangements may include the establishment of, or participation in, joint committees.

Conclusion

T he above fun ctions allow the EUFMD Comission to assist non-member countries to identify FMD virus strains circulating in the country, and where mutually benefi cial, provide additional assistance in FMD control. Howeve r it can be a rgued that the texts a re not su ffici ently explicit and that the important fun ctions deserv e speci fic mention, particularly 1) epid emiological assessment in endemic r egions which pose a thre at, and 2) promotion of FMD control in endemic regions.

2 . Membership in the EUFMD Commission

Issue T he current Constitution restricts membership to the Commission to European states, using a flexible de finition to include the states served by the FAO and OIE Regional Offices/Commissions.

It can be argued that the restriction to European countries dep rives the Commission of the active participation o f a ffected and at risk countries in the European neighbourhood, such as the Mediterranean basin countries, and also deprives the Commission of participation of other countries that have a similar objective o f remaining fr ee from FMD.

Assessment Opening membe rship to non-Europ ean states is unlikely to h ave a short term impa ct on the Europe an focus o f EUFMD actions or on its de cision making structures, given the existing 34 Europe an membe r countri es. Given that the functions o f th e Commission are not limited to Europe (see ea rlier discussion), opening m embership is not essential to the Commission taking an active role in relation to international risk reduction. T he technical bene fits o f mor e active involvement o f s cientists from FMD fr ee count ries is likely to be MAJOR bene fit to both EUFMD Commission functions and to Europe, but could b e a chieved without chang e in membership. Howeve r given that majority o f non-Europ ean stat es around the M editerr ane an have FMD control prog rams but are not FMD fr ee, and a re at risk from th eir n eighbours to the south (sah el) and east ( Arabi an peninsula, w est

Asia), it could be argued that these could be signifi cant partne rs in FMD control for Europ e and these states will there fo re have mutual interests to that of Europe. Engagement with these countries could be mutually beneficial.

T he minimum change suggested is : • discussion of the above issues at the EUFMD General Session in April 2007; • the Secreta riat makes routine invitation to (speci fied ) observ er bodies to regula r Sessions, both General and Executive, on their own expense; • that an allocation is made from the biennial budget from MT F/INT/011/MUL to enable invitation of experts from non-Europ ean countri es to Sessions, where no other sour ce o f finan ce exists, on the basis of r ecommendation from the Chairman of the particul ar Committee.