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Institute of International Animal Health/One Health (IITG)

The Institute of International Animal Health/One Health (IITG) is one out of 12 technical institutes of the Friedrich-Loeffler-Institut (FLI), federal research institute for animal health. Within the framework of the FLI mandate, the IITG conducts research and provides scientific advice in the fields of animal health / One Health with a specific focus on international cooperation.

The overall goal is to assist in the control and eradication of transboundary animal diseases (TADs) and zoonoses where they currently circulate, and therefore contribute to protect non-infected countries or regions from the incursion.

The IITG is the primary point of contact to FLI for international organizations as well as other ministries of the German administration in relation to animal health and international cooperation, such as the Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development, the Federal Ministry of Health, the Federal Ministry of Defense, and the Federal Foreign Office. Within FLI, the IITG assures the proper inclusion of the technical departments hosting the subject matter experts to provide high quality support to our partners.

The work of IITG is based on the three following pillars:

  • provision of technical support in all aspects related to the control and eradication of TADs and zoonotic diseases. This support can be remote or on the ground and is conducted flexible through diverse mechanisms, either via international organizations or within bilateral agreements with partner countries.
  • Strengthening the German commitment to international cooperation in the fields of animal health / One Health through cooperative research projects with international partners.
  • Enabling and conducting capacity building in all fields of animal health and zoonosis control for international partners at FLI or in the target countries.

Furthermore, relevant information on the global animal health and zoonosis situation as well as on international research and control programs, is permanently collected via a broad network of international partners in order to improve crisis prevention in Germany.

When cooperating with partners in the target countries and developing research portfolios, the IITG involves other specialized institutes and their expertise. This is to ensure a sustainable use of resources through internal coordination involving all relevant FLI disciplines.

In 2022, coordinated by the IITG, the first One Health field stations will be established outside Europe.

Since 2021, the IITG has been coordinating the FLI-missions within the framework of the German Epidemic Preparedness Team (SEEG).