During its 93rd General Session in May, the World Organisation for Animal Health (WOAH) has launched its new Wildlife Health Strategy 2026–2030, to reaffirm the importance of wildlife health surveillance systems as a cornerstone of global health security, biodiversity conservation and resilient ecosystems under an integrated health approach.
Following the achievements of the Wildlife Health Framework (2021–2025), the new Strategy outlines a more focused and operational roadmap to support WOAH Members in preventing, detecting and responding to health risks at the human, animal, environment interface.
In a context marked by increasing interactions between humans, domestic animals and wildlife, WOAH is positioning wildlife health as a strategic global priority. The Strategy is organised around three main objectives to strengthen governance of wildlife health systems, improve scientific knowledge and risk analysis based policies and sustainable, integrated multisectoral wildlife heath surveillance systems, this new Strategy has focus areas on surveillance systems, addressing health risk in wildlife trade and support upstream prevention efforts to reduce the risk of disease emergence. In fact, healthy wildlife populations are essential not only for biodiversity conservation, but also for protecting animal health, public health, ecosystem resilience and supporting sustainable food systems worldwide.
To support this effort, WOAH will continue improving wildlife disease reporting and information sharing through the World Animal Health Information System (WAHIS), while expanding the use of WildEpi, WOAH’s next-generation wildlife health information system, a secure platform enabling authorised wildlife health professionals to share information on wildlife health events.
WildEpi is designed to facilitate real-time reporting and analysis of wildlife morbidity and mortality events. The platform supports real-time information sharing and analysis of wildlife health events, strengthens risk analysis and supports evidence-based decision-making through multisectoral collaboration. It leverages technological advancements by offering AI-based support for wild species identification. By engaging a wider range of contributors, including conservation organisations, researchers and wildlife networks, WildEpi seeks to bridge existing gaps in animal health data collection and decision-making.
“Strengthening wildlife health surveillance is essential to improving our collective ability to detect emerging risks early and respond before they escalate into larger animal or public health events. The Wildlife Health Strategy creates an important framework to connect countries, expertise and surveillance systems under a shared One Health vision.” Tiggy Grillo, WOAH Wildlife Focal Point for Australia and Chief Operating Officer of Wildlife Health Australia.
The Wildlife Health Strategy also recognises that effective wildlife disease surveillance depends on strong partnerships, effective legislation and operational coordination across sectors and borders.
“Wildlife health can no longer be addressed in isolation. Supporting collaboration between Veterinary Services, conservation actors, laboratories and environmental authorities is critical to building resilient surveillance systems capable of responding to increasingly complex global health challenges.” Marco Sordilli, WOAH Wildlife Focal Point for Italy.
The Wildlife Health Strategy places strong emphasis on practical implementation through regional projects, partnerships and country-level support. This operational approach builds on lessons learned from the Wildlife Health Framework and focuses on delivering measurable outcomes tailored to regional realities. For example, regional projects such as ZOOSURSY in Africa, Nature for Health (N4H) and TARTANET are highlighted as key implementation mechanisms supporting integrated wildlife health surveillance systems, workforce development and multisectoral coordination.
Furthermore, the Strategy also reinforces collaboration with international partners and Networks*. The International Alliance against Health Risks in Wildlife Trade being embedded into the strategy as the arm focusing on wildlife trade with an all-hazards, One-Health approach.
Actions are also managed at a country level. For instance, Liberia’s wildlife disease surveillance workshop held in Bomi County in March 2025 shows how countries are turning awareness into practical action through a coordinated approach that brings together human, animal, and environmental health. During the workshop, participants explored the Guidelines for the Surveillance of Diseases, Pathogens, and Toxic Agents in Free-Ranging Wildlife. Released in September 2024 and developed by IUCN and WOAH, the guidelines support countries in strengthening wildlife surveillance systems through a One Health approach. Through multisectoral collaboration involving Veterinary Services, conservation authorities, laboratories, and academia, the workshop helped establish a common framework for surveillance, rapid response, and information sharing.
The Wildlife Health Strategy 2026–2030 reflects WOAH’s broader commitment to advancing prevention at the animal source and strengthening resilience across ecosystems, health systems and societies.
Through stronger governance, better data processes, enhanced scientific collaboration, integrated multisectoral surveillance systems and targeted operational support, the Strategy seeks to empower WOAH Members and their partners to prevent and better anticipate, detect and rapidly respond to wildlife health threats in a fast-changing and increasingly interconnected world.
By placing wildlife health at the centre of the One Health agenda, WOAH aims to contribute to healthier wildlife, more resilient ecosystems and a safer planet for future generations.
* Official partners include the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN), the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES), the Wildlife Disease Association (WDA), the International Council for Game and Wildlife Conservation (CIC), the Quadripartite organisations, the Wildlife Health Intelligence Network (WHIN), The Convention on the Conservation of Migrating Species of Wild Animals (CMS), the Collaborative Partnership on Sustainable Wildlife Management (CPW), The Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD), the World Wildlife Fund (WWF).
