International: Joint Declaration Reinforces One Health Cooperation in the Americas

To mark World Zoonoses Day on 6 July 2026, the members of the global Quadripartite Alliance (FAO, WOAH, PAHO/WHO and UNEP), together with their regional partners (IICA and OIRSA), signed a declaration to strengthen the One Health approach in the Americas. The initiative aims to enhance cooperation among the members of the global Quadripartite Alliance and their regional partners in order to support countries in addressing health threats that affect humans, animals, plants and the environment alike. 

Around 60 % of known infectious diseases in humans are zoonotic in origin, while nearly 75 % of emerging infectious diseases in humans originate from domestic or wild animals. Furthermore, antimicrobial resistance is associated with an estimated 1.27 million direct deaths worldwide each year. Foodborne diseases are estimated to result in approximately 1.5 million deaths annually, including around 78’000 in the Americas. These figures highlight the need for an integrated and cross-sectoral approach to addressing zoonoses, antimicrobial resistance, foodborne health risks and the impacts of climate change, biodiversity loss, environmental pollution and ecosystem degradation. 

The declaration emphasises that the Americas have a long-standing tradition of cross-sectoral cooperation in public health, animal health, agriculture and the environment. At the same time, it underlines the need to further strengthen coordination between international organisations, governments, the scientific community, civil society and the private sector. To this end, the declaration aims to strengthen information exchange and regional cooperation while supporting Member States in prioritising and implementing measures through closer coordination, cross-sectoral cooperation and public-private partnerships.