Riyadh, November 27, 2022, SPA -- Saudi Minister of Environment, Water and Agriculture, Engineer Abdul Rahman bin Abdul Mohsen Al-Fadhli, inaugurated today the Aquatic Animal Diseases Network in the Middle East in the Kingdom, in the presence of the Director General of the World Organization for Animal Health (OIE), Dr. Monique Eloit, at the Ministry's headquarters in Riyadh. The launch aims to strengthen the aquaculture industry, prevent aquatic diseases, support the production of aquatic organisms, meet the growing demand for aquaculture and its products in the world, reduce the spread of diseases, and train veterinarians and specialists in aquatic health. The network accredited the Fish Health and Safety Laboratory in Jeddah as a reference laboratory for the member states of the network, which includes countries bordering the Red Sea and the Arabian Gulf, including Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, Djibouti, Egypt, Iraq, Jordan, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, Somalia, Sudan, UAE, and Yemen. It aims to assist member states in developing and sustaining the aquaculture sector, improving the prevention, early detection, and control of aquatic diseases to ensure sustainable growth in aquaculture production in the region, exchanging information, and coordinating the support of international organizations for aquatic health services. The Kingdom is working on several joint projects with the OIE, including the Kingdom’s program to combat rabies, hand-foot-and-mouth disease, and Peste des petits ruminants, and the project for evaluating veterinary services in the Kingdom (PVS), in addition to the twinning program of veterinary laboratories with reference laboratories in France and Italy. --SPA 15:59 LOCAL TIME 12:59 GMT 0013 www.spa.gov.sa/w1819063