Muhammad Aslam Ghauri, Federal Secretary of the Ministry of National Health Services, Regulations and Coordination, urged urgent strengthening of the One Health system, warning that future pandemics cannot be prevented without coordinated action across human, animal and environmental sectors. He told participants that pandemic preparedness is now a national priority requiring sustained collaboration rather than a sectoral responsibility.
The call came during the inaugural session of a two-day national training on pandemic preparedness under the One Health approach, organised by the Health Services Academy at the COMSTECH Secretariat in Islamabad. The training brought together professionals from health and environmental sectors to focus on zoonotic diseases, vector ecology, climate-resilient health systems, surveillance, epidemic intelligence and risk communication, reflecting the broad scope of the One Health agenda.
Prof. Dr. Shahzad Ali Khan, Vice Chancellor of the Health Services Academy, emphasised the need to strengthen institutional capacity and adopt evidence-based approaches to tackle emerging public health threats. Providing a strategic overview, Prof. Dr. Tariq Mahmood Ali, National Coordinator of the One Health Workforce Development and Coordination Project, described the initiative as a transformational step toward national health security and highlighted Pakistan’s growing vulnerability due to climate change, rapid urbanisation and increasing human-animal interaction.
Prof. Tariq Mahmood Ali noted that nearly 75 percent of emerging infectious diseases originate from animals, underscoring the requirement for integrated surveillance and coordinated response mechanisms. He said the programme aims to build a multi-sectoral workforce capable of early detection, rapid response and effective outbreak management across Pakistan.
Dr. Muhammad Asif Sahibzada, Director General for Environment and Climate Change, highlighted how environmental degradation, poor waste management and climate variability are shifting disease patterns in the country and called for stronger integration of environmental monitoring into public health planning. Dr. S.M. Mursalin, Chief Executive Officer of the Pakistan One Health Alliance, stressed systems thinking and cross-sector collaboration as essential to avoid delays caused by siloed responses and to build coordinated, field-ready systems.
Officials said the programme features technical sessions, group work and assessments designed to develop a cadre of trained professionals and trainers to support nationwide implementation of the One Health approach. The workshop concludes on April 8 with the distribution of certificates to participants, a step organisers described as strengthening Pakistan’s preparedness through training, integrated surveillance and workforce development under the One Health framework.
