Animal welfare and health guidance for the Global Action Plan on Biodiversity and Health
The Global Action Plan on Biodiversity and Health (GAPBH), adopted at the 2024 Conference of the Parties to the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD COP16), marks a pivotal moment for global health.
Built on the One Health approach, which recognises the interdependence of people, animals, and ecosystems, the Plan lays out a framework for national action addressing the interconnections between biodiversity, animal health and welfare, and human health and wellbeing.
In light of growing global threats such as biodiversity loss, climate change, pollution, zoonotic disease emergence, and antimicrobial resistance, the Plan urges countries to act with coherence and urgency.
The GAPBH provides general recommendations to achieve policy integration and capacity building, and specific recommendations related to the various Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework (KMGBF) Targets.
This guidance was developed by the World Federation for Animals in close collaboration with the Born Free Foundation.
It supports national implementation of the GAPBH by offering practical guidance on how countries can leverage animal welfare to advance biodiversity and health strategies. In doing so, it contributes to multiple global commitments, including the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals, the CBD’s Global Biodiversity Framework, and is consistent with the prevention and One Health objectives of the WHO Pandemic Agreement.
Animal welfare serves as a strategic lever when delivering sustainable development, environmental protection, climate adaptation and mitigation, and resilient public health systems.
This inventory makes specific policy recommendations for countries to implement Section III, Part B of the GAPBH Annex, on the wildlife protection, biodiversity and climate, and farm animal welfare areas.
For each area, we provide a set of concrete policy recommendations, accompanied by suggestions to overcome potential challenges, indicators to track progress, and successful or emerging case studies.
