Healthy planet for healthy people: towards a comprehensive ‘One Health’ approach

Key points

The EESC:

• encourages the EU institutions to develop a comprehensive EU One Health (OH) strategy, followed by an action plan, subject to adequate financial resources, that considers a multi-level governance and a multi-stakeholder approach to support Member States with implementation;
• recommends strengthening the dedicated DG SANTE directorate responsible for OH, fostering effective cooperation across all relevant DGs;
• stresses the need to integrate the OH approach across all major EU policy frameworks and to strengthen collaboration among EU agencies, fostering synergies with international partners and promoting inclusive governance through enhanced social and civil dialogues to ensure broad-based support and alignment with global OH efforts;
• urges the Commission to allocate dedicated financial resources within the next MFF to support OH implementation, especially for nature-based solutions, prevention and research;
• considers it fundamental to support integrated monitoring of environmental, animal and human health risks, and to fund transdisciplinary research to inform early warning systems, policy development and resilience-building strategies. Strengthening international collaboration is essential for addressing these complex risks and effective and coordinated global responses;
• calls for inclusive mechanisms that involve local actors, policymakers, economic actors, organised civil society, industry, human and veterinary public health, environment authorities, exposed communities and young people at all stages of policy making;
• considers it fundamental to promote targeted education and training initiatives to strengthen the understanding of the environmental and social determinants of health;
• stresses the importance of identifying and addressing the specific challenges faced by agriculture, fisheries, forestry and industry in transitioning towards sustainable, OH-aligned practices. In addition, it is considered important to address the needs and concerns of the most vulnerable (due to their exposome) and the ways to support them;
• believes that the OH Strategy must consider global finance and trade implications, including the introduction of health and environmental mirror clauses in trade agreements to safeguard public health and ensure a level playing field.