Welcome to the page of RIMSA 17

Ministers of Agriculture and Health of the Americas will participate in the most important forum of the Americas to define veterinary public health policies.

The 17th Inter-American Ministerial Meeting on Health and Agriculture (RIMSA 17) will be held in Asuncion, Paraguay, on July 21 and 22, 2016.

Under the theme "One Health and Sustainable Development Goals" Ministers will analyze veterinary public health issues in the field of food safety, the eradication of foot-and-mouth disease in the Americas and the prevention and control of zoonotic diseases as well as strengthening and articulating issues related to animal-human health interface, essential to the prevention and control of certain diseases, and to the mitigation and containment of the impact of antimicrobial resistance.

In this context, the nexus between animal health and public health in the diverse ecosystems is fully expressed in the concept of One Health, which with a good governance practice among all sectors and actors involved contributes to promoting and improving health of people and animals by risk prevention and mitigation of crisis effect generated at the interface between such populations in their different environments. On the other hand, in order to consolidate the achievements of the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) there is the need to move forward to “end poverty and transform lives without stopping protecting the planet.”

In the "Special Summit on Sustainable Development” held in September 2015, Governments have approved a long-term program to improve people’s lives and protect the planet for future generations with the 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDG).

Two important technical events will serve as preparation for the ministerial summit: The 13th Meeting of the Hemispheric Committee for the Eradication of Foot-and-mouth Disease - COHEFA13 - on 19 July and the 7th Meeting of the Pan American Commission for Food Safety - COPAIA 7 - on July 20.

The Veterinary Public Health/Pan American Foot-and-Mouth Disease Center (PANAFTOSA) of the Pan American Health Organization/World Health Organization (PAHO/WHO) is organizing RIMSA 17, with the support and sponsorship of Government of Paraguay, through the Ministries of Public Health and Social Welfare (MSPBS), Ministry of Agriculture and Livestock (MAG), Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MRE) and the National Service of Quality and Animal Health (SENACSA).