17th WOAH World Fund Advisory Committee Meeting
26 January 2023, virtual

Dr Hans Wyss, Advisory Committee Chair and WOAH Delegate of Switzerland, chaired the 17th Meeting of the Advisory Committee of the WOAH World Animal Health and Welfare Fund (World Fund). Fifty-seven participants representing the Organisation’s resource partners attended.

This year’s meeting focused on providing a review of the Fund’s financial performance in 2022  and an outlook for the future, including associated investment needs. Further to a proposal from the Chair, the Committee Members agreed to conduct all future Advisory Committee meetings in May, to coincide with the annual WOAH General Session. The reasoning is that an in-person meeting would foster networking and discussions among the Members and provide an accurate overview of financial performance for the previous year.

2022: a record year in review

An overview of last year’s financial performance was presented using the World Fund’s six key financial performance indicators. In particular, the presentation focused on annual income and expenditure, outstanding monies owing, number and value of signed grants, number and value of active grants and 2022 investment priorities related to the Seventh Strategic Plan. Highlights showed that the World Fund’s income follows an upward trend consistent with previous years.

2022 marked the Fund’s record year with the highest income received since its foundation in 2006. This reflects continued trust and confidence in the Organisation.

WOAH Members remain the principal investor and provide 75% of annual income, with five donors contributing 51% of the World Fund’s total funding over the period 2018-2022. The presentation also showcased areas of intervention deemed strategic for WOAH and that require investment. Key examples are the continued evolution of the World Animal Health Information System (WAHIS), as a part of information management, and wildlife and Avian Influenza, under the Organisation’s global frameworks.

Participants congratulated WOAH for the clear presentation that highlighted new indicators and perspectives. Further to a query on how to mobilise more non-earmarked investment, the topic was put on the agenda for further discussion at the next meeting in May.

Strategic reflections for 2023 and beyond

 Dr Monique Eloit, WOAH Director General, provided her strategic reflections, noting the role played by the Members in providing much-needed complementary resources for the Organisation to deliver its mandate and implement the Seventh Strategic Plan. She recalled positive results from 2022 thanks to support received through the World Fund, including the development and launch of the Quadripartite Joint Plan of Action on One Health, a reduction in the use of antimicrobial agents as growth promoters (as reported in WOAH’s sixth annual report on AMU) and the success of the first annual report of the Observatory. In closing, she appealed for continued investments, particularly for areas and topics of high priority for the Membership.

In closing, the Advisory Committee was informed of a survey to be conducted following the meeting to collect qualitative data on WOAH’s resource mobilisation practices. The findings will be presented at the next meeting in May. Drs Wyss and Eloit thanked the participants for their active participation and the WOAH staff for their hard work in 2022.

WOAH World Fund is grateful to its partners for their ongoing support.