IPSI Collaborative Activity Proposal Form

The following form is for use when submitting proposed IPSI Collaborative Activities for consideration by the IPSISteering Committee. See the Collaborative Activity Guidelines on p. 3 for more information.
Please return the completed form to the IPSI Secretariat (isi@unu.edu).
IPSI Collaborative Activities are the activities that shall be undertaken by more than one IPSI member
and constitute an important part of IPSI activities with the purpose of fostering collaboration within theIPSI membership and implementing the IPSI Strategy and Plan of Action. The IPSI CollaborativeActivities shall be developed and implemented with the endorsement of the Steering Committee inaccordance with the Collaborative Activity Guidelines. Resource mobilization for IPSI collaborative
activities shall be the responsibility of the implementing members in principle. – IPSI Operational
Guidelines, Chapter 5.4
Date of Application:

20 December 2022

Project title:
Flying Vets Mongolia
Collaborating organizations (IPSI members):（*Please underline the leading organization)
The International Council for Game and Wildlife Conservation (CIC)
Ministry Of Environment And Tourism of Mongolia
Other contributing organization(s) (including IPSI non-members):
World Organization for Animal Health (WOAH)
Wildlife Conservation Society (WCS)
Expected term (e.g. 1 January 2014 – 31 December 2015):
August 2022 – August 2030
IPSI strategic objective(s) addressed (tick all that apply; see p. 3 for more details):
X

1. Increase knowledge and understanding of SEPLS

X

2. Address direct and underlying causes responsible for the decline or loss of SEPLS

X

3. Enhance benefits from SEPLS

X

4. Enhance human, institutional and sustainable financial capacities

Continued on next page.

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Description of the activity:Please provide as much information as possible on:• Background• Activities (including site locations if applicable)• Expected outcomes• Actors and task sharing• How the activity relates to the IPSI Strategy and IPSI Plan of Action• Resources, funding• Monitoring and reporting
BackgroundWildlife in Mongolia is often in the spotlight at the international level, including two emblematic species, namely thePrzewalski's horse (Equus ferus przewalskii) and Saiga antelope (Saiga tatarica). The issue of wildlife-related diseases, someof which can be traced back to disease incidences in livestock, has been prevalent in Mongolia including the virus known as
Peste des Petits Ruminants (PPR) which led to the die-off of 1,000s of Saiga antelope in 2017. Due to the PPR the Saiga
antelope population decreased by 85% from January 2017 to April 2018. In 1969, the Przewalski's horse – the only surviving
wild horse species that has never been successfully domesticated – was listed as extinct in the wild. However, to date throughsuccessful re-introduction programmes we have 2000 horses roaming in the Mongolian steppes but similarly to the Siaga
antelope exposed pathological diseases. As Mongolia is located on the way of four major migration flyways it also closely
monitors the Avian Influenza (AI) outbreaks. AI outbreak was recorded in wild birds in 2005 and 2006.
In addition, with the emergence of new zoonotic diseases along with other anthropogenic activities including the increasing
number of domestic animals, the local communities face an increased risk of zoonosis. Many efforts are ongoing to try tominimize these threats, yet knowledge of conservation needs in Mongolia are growing. In addition, wildlife faces pressure
from increasing domestic livestock.
Collaborating on the Flying Vets project with an initial pilot phase in Mongolia CIC and WOAH in close partnership with
Ministry of Environment and Tourism of Mongolia and The Wildlife Conservation Society aim to promote and enhance theability of local communities in Mongolia to identify, respond to and manage wildlife diseases including the negative
consequences for wildlife-domestic livestock interactions through the transmission and spread of diseases including zoonoses,
thereby reducing the potential threat posed to public health, food safety as well as wildlife conservation.
Scope•••In the context of the International Health Regulations (IHR), the Flying Vets Project will promote and assist the Stateof Mongolia in the implementation of IHR including to help limiting the spread of health risks to neighbouring
countries and to prevent unwarranted travel and trade restrictions, while promoting the sustainable use of wildlife as
captured in Target 5 of the Global Biodiversity Framework and in support of the Satoyama Initative (of which CIC
has and remains a key supporter since its establishment at CBD CoP10).
With reference and in support of the Quadripartite framework of FAO-WOAH-WHO-UNEP Memorandum ofUnderstanding on tackling the challenges at the human, animal, plant and ecosystem interface using a more integrated
and coordinated approach, the Flying Vets project aims to utilize and further develop existing evaluation and gap
analyses tools (such as the WOAH Performance of Veterinary Service Pathway) to address emerging conservation
challenges in the State of Mongolia
The project aims to build on and support IHR-PVS National Bridging Workshops (NBW) facilitated by Food andAgriculture Organization of the UN, World Health Organization (WHO) and World Organisation for Animal Health(WOAH), while also supporting the Veterinary Services in implementing the NBW roadmap and in particularstrengthening the collaboration with the human and environmental health sector.

Objectives••

Aligning with WHO, WOAH, FAO, and UNEP One Health Priorities, the Flying Vets Project seeks to strengthen
animal health monitoring and surveillance as well as establish a reporting system at the national level by mobilizing
CIC, WOAH and other relevant stakeholders for their potential role in surveillance to detect and prevent animal andzoonotic disease emergence, and to help control disease spread.
The Flying Vets project seeks to address conservation challenges by promoting and facilitating the current knowledgeof the local veterinarians by conducting capacity-building workshops and education programs to ensure greatercommunication of environmental challenges in the human and animal health sector through the One Health Approach.

2••Initially, this pilot project will carry out a needs assessment and ecosystem analysis in Mongolia as well as understandthe risk factors, including socioeconomic and cultural contexts, for disease spillover from wildlife to domestic animals
and humans (and vice-versa), which will identify areas of potential intervention related to capacity and capability
building of the local veterinarians and effective on-ground monitoring systems.
In addition, the pilot project will map out the needs of local stakeholders and identify potential collaboration
mechanisms between the different stakeholders, as well as assess government agencies’ interest/willingness to support
this project on a larger scale in the long term. This will include both national Government bodies and nongovernmental organisations (NGOs) based in Ulaanbaatar and selected target regions, as well as rural stakeholders
who would stand to benefit from the project (namely nomadic herders and falconers in rural areas of Mongolia)
complemented by international experts.

Actors and Task sharing
CIC advocates for wildlife conservation through the principles of sustainable use. The organization’s main strength comesfrom its membership, consisting of wildlife experts, opinion leaders, NGOs, educational institutions, public and private
associations, as well as 27 CIC State Members through their relevant wildlife Ministries. With its diverse membershipcomprised also of hunters, the CIC has a strong presence on the ground allowing for continuous surveying and monitoring ofwildlife species and wild habitats.
The role of WOAH is to improve animal health worldwide and thus to build a safer, healthier and more sustainable world. In
2020, WOAH published their Wildlife Health Framework, with the goal of “Protecting wildlife health to achieve One Health”.
The two main objectives of this framework—now being implemented by WOAH as a strategy—are (i) Members improve theirability to manage the risk of pathogen emergence in wildlife and transmission at the human-animal-ecosystem interface, whilst
taking into account the protection of wildlife, and (ii) Members improve surveillance systems, early detection, notification andmanagement of wildlife diseases. In the context of Flying Vets, both the CIC and WOAH play a major role in planning andresource mobilization as well as consultations with national stakeholders and mapping out the roadmap for the project.
WSC aims to save wildlife and wild places in Mongolia through science, conservation actions and education. As a localorganization, WSC conducts effective surveillance and monitoring programs on wildlife diseases. WCS has on going
monitoring programs on Avian Influenza, Mongolian gazelle FMD and Mongolian saiga PPR. The organization has a strong
focus on One Health approach and incorporates SMART approach in its wildlife disease investigation systems. WSC provides
practical and on ground knowledge and outlines feasibility areas for the Flying Vets project by having close relationship withlocal communities in remote areas of Mongolia. As the local implementing agency, Ministry of Environment and Tourism
takes the responsibility of implementing and enforcing the outcomes of the project on ground.

How the activity relates to the IPSI Strategy and IPSI Plan of Action
The Flying Vets aligns with the vision of the Satoyama Initiative which is to realize societies in harmony with nature wheresocio-economic activities align with and support natural processes. The project also overlaps on the Six Ecological andSocioeconomic Perspectives of the Satoyama Initiative.
The Flying Vets project is fully aligned with IPSI’s strategic objectives as well as with One Health approach and with thepillars of the CBD that specifically refer to effective conservation of biological diversity and considerations to public health.
In fact, it is a direct response to implementing Target 5 of the Global Biodiversity Framework which was adopted this monthat CBD CoP15 and reads as follows: “Ensure that the use, harvesting and trade of wild species is sustainable, safe and legal,
preventing overexploitation, minimizing impacts on non-target species and ecosystems, and reducing the risk of pathogen spillover, applying the ecosystem approach, while respecting and protecting customary sustainable use by indigenous peoples andlocal communities. “As wildlife diseases like PPR, FMD and AI are one of the major reasons for disappearance of theemblematic species of Mongolia, Flying Vets aims to improve disease detection and prevent their spill-over which in turn
reduces the potential threat posed to public health, food safety as well as wildlife conservation. The project addresses the direct
and underlying causes that are responsible for the decline and loss of biological diversity, by doing so this leads to overall
healthier ecosystems that enhance benefits from SEPLS.
The consultation workshops ensure that Governments, and all stakeholders are involved in taking appropriate steps to achieve
and implement concrete actions and plans for sustainable production and consumption as well as keep the natural resources
within safe ecological limits. This is in line with the IPSI Strategy to enhance the human, institutional and sustainable financial
capacities for the implementation of the Satoyama Initiative. In addition, this also reflects one of the Six Ecological andSocioeconomic Perspectives of the Satoyama Initiative.

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The Flying Vets also aims to enhance implementation of the project through participatory planning and capacity building
activities. The project aims to facilitate the professionals’ trainings of local veterinarians as well as in livestock herders to better
recognize and handle of newly discovered diseases in wildlife species thus, increasing knowledge and understanding of SEPLS.
Funding
A group of key stakeholders with representatives from GAVS, SCVL, WOAH, FAO, and WCS proposed to develop anapplication for funding under UNEP’s Nature for Health multi-partner trust fund initiative, of which WOAH is a consortium
partner. Three Mongolian Ministers provided endorsements in support of the application: the Ministry of Food, Agricultureand Light Industries (MoFALI), the Ministry of Health (MoH), and the Ministry of Environment and Tourism (MOET).
In the initial stages, a total of €25,000 was raised for the project in form of donations, therefore the project is currently being
implemented. In addition, the application was submitted on behalf of the Flying Vets working group by Chief VeterinaryOfficer, General Authority for Veterinary Services - GAVS. As a result of this application announcement was made at theCBD COP 15 in Montreal (December, 2022) that would allocate €2,000,000 for the next 3 years to the winning project.

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