The Objectives of CAMENET
The Middle East region is historically known for its attachment to camels which are of cultural, social and economic value in the region. They were used for their meet, milk and skin as well as in transportation and entertainment. Nowadays, camel still has an important role in food security as a source ofmeat and milk in addition to its growing role in industry. Camel milk is used to produce milk milkshakes, cappuccinos, ice-creams and chocolate bars. Some studies suggest that camel milk contain ten times the amount of iron and three times the vitamin C of cows’ milk. They also suggest that it is low in fat, more digestible than cow milk and lower in cholesterol, and more suitable for those who are lactose intolerant. Moreover, camel is essentially used for racing and beauty contest as these are considered to be very popular activities among most of the Middle East community members. These cultural activities are held annually from September to April, which results in intensive animal movement especially across borders where thousands of camels cross borders every year. It is worth noting here that there are around 14 million camels alive as of 2010, with 90% being dromedaries, mostly living in theHorn of Africa, theSahel,Maghreb,Middle EastandSouth Asia).
The intensive camel movements within the countries and across borders especially from the Horn of Africa to the Middle East as well as the increase in the camel international trade demand, all of this impose a higher risk of Trans-boundary Animal Diseases (TADs) and zoonotic diseases. In addition, the current husbandry practices and production systems also considered as potential risk factors for camel disease occurrence, spread and transmission. Realizing the potential risk on animal and human health, the OIE formed an international ad hoc group of experts to address the bacterial, parasitic and viral disease of camelids and identify the priority diseases for camels so that the relevant OIE Reference Laboratories can be contacted and asked for information on the disease in camelids and availability of diagnostic tests validated for camelids.
The OIE ad hoc group expressed the need for enhancing the knowledge on the pathology and the need for specific diagnostic tests and vaccines to better investigate and control the camel diseases. The groupissued a list of significant diseases of Camelids and recommended the importance of establishing a network of laboratories for camel diseases. To this end, the Middle East OIE regional office, worked very closely with Middle East animal health authorities to establish a knowledge hub for camel diseasesin the region, this resulted in the establishment of Camel Middle East Network known as CAMENET hosted by Abu Dhabi in the United Arab Emirates and consisting of nine member countries (Bahrain, Iraq, Jordan, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, United Arab Emirates and Yemen). The main objective of the Network is to assist member countries developing their camel sector, in particular through the control of the camel diseases.
The Objectives of CAMENET:
1-Improving scientific and technological capacities in epidemiology and diagnostic of camel diseases in the sub-region:
-Promotion of research in camel diseases’ epidemiology and pathology;
-Training of member countries staff on surveillance, diagnosis and prevention of camel diseases;
-Information and management of health crisis related to the camels;
2-Contributing to the development, standardization and validation of specific diagnostic methods for major camel diseases according to OIE standards and procedures:
-Design and dissemination of specific biosecurity elements in the laboratories of the region;
-Development and validation of camel diseases’ diagnostic techniques;
-Production and distribution of diagnostic reagents;
-Harmonization of laboratory methods used in member countries;
-Development and validation of curative products for camel diseases;
-Development and quality control of specific camel vaccines;
3-Coordinating the support of international organizations (FAO/OIE/WHO) to the national authorities (including the veterinary services) of the member countries in their surveillance and control of camel diseases including emerging diseases;
4-Facilitating collaboration between the national, regional and international institutions and FAO/OIE reference laboratories and collaborating centres for capacity building and exchange of expertise and cooperation;
5-Promoting specific studies on husbandry / camel breeding practices, socio-economics and other risk factors at the animal-human-environment interface;
6-Disseminating knowledge on camel diseases’ control and camel production best practices to member countries and the international scientific community.
In order to start the CAMENET activities, CAMENET member countries held a number of meetings to agree on the activities and the list of camel diseases of regional concern and these includes:
- Gastro-intestinal and blood parasites: Surra;
- Skin diseases: contagious ecthyma, camelpox, ringworm;
- Multifactorial diseases: camel calves diarrhoea, respiratory syndrome;
- Endemic zoonoses: brucellosis, Rift Valley Fever, rabies, tuberculosis;
- Pandemic threats of animal origin: MERS-CoV;
- Other diseases of economic impact.
Despite the presence of a number of studies on some camel diseases, still more collaborative efforts are needed to increase our understanding.It is worth noting that the identification of MERS-CoV in camels and its connection with human infections reinforced the importance of capacity building and enhancing our knowledge in camel diseases. Since then, there was a noticeable increase interest in conducting investigations on camels worldwide. In addition, the joint efforts of OIE/WHO/FAO are very evident to support countries and encourage collaborations through organized missions and technical meetings coupled with update reports and awareness. Recently, IAEA is also involved through conducting training on nuclear techniques for rapid identification of MERS-CoV in partnership with FAO.
As a matter of fact, the camel is an interesting and challenging animal due to its unique immune system. Consequently, while most of the diseases show clear clinical symptoms in animals, yet in camels are subclinical with mild or no symptoms.