During the fifth Global Health Security Agenda (GHSA) Ministerial Meeting in Nusa Dua, Bali, Health Minister Nila F. Moeloek said Indonesia had taken the initiative to lead other countries in preventing pandemic zoonoses through the Zoonotic Disease Action Package (ZDAP) scheme.

Among the objectives of the ZDAP is to implement a One Health approach across all relevant governments, meaning that the approach will not focus solely on humans, but also on other elements, such as animals and the environment.

The approach will be carried out to detect and control zoonotic threats within the respective participating countries. “Through this action plan, we aim to prioritize the prevention of zoonoses. It would be better if we could prevent the disease rather than cure it,” Nila said on Wednesday.

Indonesia has built a collective awareness with other GHSA members to prevent global health threats for the past five years.

In the previous framework, GHSA members urged more countries to implement the International Health Regulation (IHR). According to Nila, the previous framework was a success.

“We managed to increase other countries’ awareness regarding the importance of the IHR. Moreover, we also welcomed a lot of new members during the last framework period,” Nila said, adding that the number of GHSA members had increased to 65 this year from 29 countries in 2014.

Zoonoses, which are diseases that can be transmitted to humans from animals and vice versa, have become a major issue in Indonesia over the past few years.

In 2005, Indonesia recorded its first avian influenza case in Tangerang, Banten, where three people died after contracting it.

The disease, which is caused by the H5N1 virus, killed Iwan Siswara Rapei, a Supreme Audit Agency (BPK) employee as well as his daughters, 8-year-old Sabrina Nurul Aisyah and 1-year-old Thalita Nurul Azizah. The case was considered unique after it was found that they had no direct contact with poultry, a major carrier of the H5N1 virus.

The ministry’s head of zoonotic and vector-borne disease prevention, Siti Nadia Tarmizi, said the drugs used to treat zoonoses were very specific and that was among the major challenges the ministry faced when treating patients.

Avian influenza, for example, can only be treated with an antiviral drug called Tamiflu.

“Which is why we always prioritize preventive measures in order to reduce the risk of infections,” Siti said.

One of the latest measures introduced by the government to prevent zoonoses was a Japanese encephalitis (JE) vaccine program in Bali in May. It is a disease that causes swelling of the brain that can lead to a coma.

The symptoms include fever, headaches, vomiting and difficulty moving. It usually develops within five to 15 days.

Bali was chosen for the program because 70 percent of all cases were found on the island, according to data from the Bali Health Agency. The JE mostly occurred in Bali because of a large population of pigs.

The GHSA is being attended by more than 600 participants and consists of high-level officials and members of international organizations from 43 different countries. The ministerial-level meeting ended on Thursday.

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