UNEP Factsheet
May 2020

Zoonotic Diseases“Never before have so many opportunities existed for pathogens to passfrom wild and domestic animals to people.”
United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP),
Executive Director, Inger Andersen

Unless we act to protect habitat and biodiversity
loss, says United Nations Environment Programme(UNEP) Executive Director, Inger Andersen,
pandemics could become a new normal in thiscentury. In response, UNEP is seeking tocomplement the work of its partners to advance aOne Health approach that links the health of people,
agricultural systems and nature, to explore how thedeterioration of the world’s ecosystems is fueling therise of zoonotic disease pandemics; and to offer
practical recommendations to de-escalate this risk.

COVID-19 and Zoonotic Diseases
75 per cent of all emerging infectious diseases
have come from wildlife. And while the science is
not yet conclusive as to the origin, it seems likelythat COVID-19 originated from human-wildlife
transmission and has since spread to nearly all
countries in the world. But this should not surpriseus. Middle East respiratory syndrome (MERS) wastransmitted from camels to humans in 2012, andviruses ranging from Avian Flu to Ebola all havetheir sources in wildlife to human transmission. As
more and more people encroach and shrink
remaining natural areas, and as the process ofurbanization moves us ever closer to wildlife, we
increase our potential exposure to disease-causing
pathogens. Unless we rethink our relationship tonature, zoonotic pandemics could be repeated,again and again.

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UNEP’s Response
Zoonotic disease transmission is a global, regional
and local challenge, so solutions must be context
specific. There is no one-size-fits-all. Given this,
UNEP will support targeted, site-specific strategies
to reduce the threat of such diseases by considering
the impacts on equity, indigenous communities andvulnerable groups. This will take the form of three
key interventions:

Zoonotic early warning system
A new zoonotic risk and response programme will
be developed to improve capacity to reduce threatsof zoonotic diseases, in coordination with key
partners. UNEP’s work will identify demand-driven
recovery options that contribute to the advancementof the Sustainable Development Goal targets. Thisframework will address the root drivers of zoonotic
diseases, with specific policy options to reverse
habitat destruction and promote sustainable wildlifemanagement. Working together with United Nations
agencies and Resident Coordinators, this initiative
will develop a framework for recovery thatincorporates the full capabilities of the United
Nations system and is founded on the sciencebased evidence of the critical role of nature forhealth and sustainable economic recovery–with theCongo Basin being a potential first location for a
new zoonotic disease surveillance programme.
National zoonotic risk reduction action plans
While many countries already have action plans for
dealing with zoonotic diseases, UNEP will explore
how it can work with partners to further support
Member States in both rebuilding post-pandemic
economies better and reducing the threat ofzoonotic diseases in the future. In collaboration withpartners including Regional Offices and Resident
Coordinators, we will develop evidence-based
country/region-specific road maps with policy
options for green investment to support economic
recovery. These custom packages of support will
include environmental impact assessment toolkits;
improved regulation to reduce the risk of zoonotic
cases; inspection and standards for markets andtrade corridors, restoration to enhance habitat
connectivity; strengthening resilience of the tourism
sector; rural livelihoods, and enhanced biosafety
practices.
Ambitious new biodiversity targets
While investing in public health systems is critical toaddress zoonotic disease, our best hope of keeping
people safe is by reducing the risk of zoonotic
diseases at their source.
Given this, UNEP will seek to reduce one of themain drivers of zoonotic disease transmission–thedegradation of ecosystems–by increasing theambition and commitment to new global biodiversity
targets and their means of implementation.
Increasing focus on health in the biodiversity
frameworks as well as food management systems
will be key, as will ensuring that COVID-19 recovery
investments enhance biodiversity and climate
commitments, rather than undermine them. Building

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back better has to be greener and rebalance ourrelationship with nature.

Way Forward
UNEP will explore current tools and see how they
could be supplemented so that Member States havea global risk dashboard on the emergence ofzoonotic threats, by the end of 2020. The aim is to:• Have supported recovery and action plans forgovernments to mitigate the risk of zoonotic
diseases in their countries, as they relate to their
origins in nature, by the end of 2020;• Have supported governments in raising theambition of their biodiversity targets and meansof implementation; and to ensure that therecovery investments work for, rather thanagainst nature, by the end of 2021.
This work will build on existing capabilities anddevelop new ones for UNEP and Member States.
We welcome support from a range of stakeholders
and stats. As this plan comes together, we lookforward to collaborating, learning and partnering withthose keen to engage on this agenda.

Contacts:
Doreen Robinson (doreen.robinson@un.org)
Marietta Sakalian (marietta.sakalian@un.org)