Singapore to host the 7th World One Health Congress

Leading global scientists and policymakers will exchange learnings to promote multi-sectoral collaboration to address complex global health challenges

SINGAPORE, Oct. 26, 2022 /PRNewswire/ — The 7th World One Health Congress (WOHC), the world’s premier event to advance the One Health agenda, will take place in Singapore at the iconic Sands Expo and Convention Centre, Marina Bay Sands, from 7 to 11 November 2022. Mdm Halimah Yacob, President of the Republic of Singapore, will grace the event’s Opening Ceremony on 7 November as its Guest-of-Honour and deliver the Opening Address.

The global One Health movement aims to improve health and well-being by preventing and mitigating crises that originate from the animal-human-environment interface. This year’s Congress, hosted by Singapore’s SingHealth Duke-NUS Global Health Institute (SDGHI) under the auspices of the SingHealth Duke-NUS Academic Medical Centre, is themed ‘Integrating Science, Policy and Clinical Practice: A One Health Imperative Post-COVID-19‘, and will promote multi-sectoral efforts and collaborations that advance a ‘whole of society’ approach and perspective to health hazards and the management of risks. Temasek Foundation is the Pinnacle Sponsor of the Congress.

The Director-General of the World Health Organization, Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, and the Director-General of the World Organisation for Animal Health, Dr Monique Eloit, will deliver opening remarks on the first day. More than 120 speakers from organisations around the world, such as the World Bank, Gavi, the Vaccine Alliance and the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, will come together to share their knowledge and experiences across five distinct scientific tracks, spanning themes from One Health Science to Pandemic Preparedness and Health Systems Resilience.

The Congress will feature a hybrid experience of in-person and virtual sessions with renowned keynote speakers, plenary lectures by experts, scientific sessions with abstract presentations and panel discussions on urgent and emerging topics. Leading scientists and policymakers will be joined by representatives from academic institutions, civil society, national governments, the private sector and multilateral organisations from around the world to integrate insights from diverse disciplines, including epidemiology and disease surveillance, animal production and trade, food safety, animal science, human health, environmental science/ecology and global health security.

The biennial congress is taking place at a pertinent moment for the world. “As the world emerges from COVID-19, it is vital for scientific communities, policymakers and clinical professionals to build our collective resilience against future global health challenges,” said Associate Professor Tan Hiang Khoon, Co-Chairman of the WOHC 2022 Steering Committee and Director of SDGHI. “The 7^th World One Health Congress will host important conversations and promote integrated regional and global efforts that are essential to prevent, predict, prepare and respond to crises and safeguard our planet’s healthy and sustainable future. The SingHealth Duke-NUS Global Health Institute is pleased to represent Singapore in organising this Congress, and play a part in advancing global efforts to improve health outcomes and achieve health equity for all.”

“The crux of the One Health paradigm is about recognising our global interconnectivity across not just the human experience, but animal and environmental determinants as well. This has never been more apparent than throughout the COVID-19 pandemic, during which we have seen first-hand just how much advancing health equity relies on our collective understanding and response to global health threats,” said Professor Wang Linfa, Co-Chairman of the WOHC 2022 Steering Committee and Professor at Duke-NUS Medical School. “This Congress is a well-timed testament to that and provides a platform to help move the needle in fostering broad collaboration and impact to advance One Health.”

Running in parallel to the main WOHC 2022, the Temasek Foundation Pinnacle Series is a three-day programme that focuses on the readiness to combat public health threats in Asia, particularly in Southeast Asia.

This targeted programme provides a platform for strategic discussions and opportunities for close networking among invited policy makers, healthcare leaders and scientists in the region involved in different disciplines, including zoonotic diseases, bio-surveillance studies and antimicrobial resistance, to enhance the preparedness and response to emerging global health threats.

“Asia urgently needs to build capabilities to be ready to respond to any outbreaks that can potentially pose a major threat to the lives and livelihoods of its populations,” said Mr Lim Hock Chuan, Head, Programmes, Temasek Foundation. “One of the most critical lessons learnt from the pandemic is that we must collaborate and share knowledge to tackle the most pressing healthcare challenges. We hope that the Temasek Foundation Pinnacle Series provides healthcare leaders an opportunity to continue this spirit of learning and exchange to better prepare the region for future pandemics.”

The WOHC is open for registration for both in-person and virtual attendance here. For more information on WOHC 2022 and its speakers, go to www.worldonehealthcongress.org or follow the congress on Twitter and Facebook.