March 11, 2009

NEW YORK - United Nations Mission representatives and leaders from animal welfare organizations attended a special briefing at U.N. Headquarters to discuss how a global commitment to animal welfare can promote the United Nation’s sustainable development agenda and help achieve the U.N. Millennium Development Goals. The event was co-hosted by the Permanent Mission of the Republic of Seychelles to the United Nations and the World Society for the Protection of Animals (WSPA). 

“In Seychelles we believe that instilling care and respect for, and promoting the humane management of animals at home, at the work place and on the farm will help reap dividends on a much wider scale,” said the H.E. Ronald Jean Jumeau, ambassador of the Permanent Mission of the Republic of Seychelles to the United Nations. “Caring for the welfare of animals helps us better look after ourselves, our families, communities and societies, and, in this age of global food and economic crises, strengthen our food security and national economies as well.”

The briefing and reception ended a week-long series of meetings between WSPA representatives and members of more than 30 permanent missions and international organizations. WSPA, alongside its key partners, is urging the United Nations to formally call for a partnership between the animal welfare and development communities to help further progress in both areas. As a result of the discussions, governments and U.N. agencies are intensifying efforts to collaborate on animal welfare issues and open communications between inter-governmental sectors and non-governmental organizations to better benefit the health and welfare of animals.

Nearly one billion of the world’s poorest people depend on animals for their livelihoods. Good animal care reduces the risk of disease, increases agricultural productivity, ensures food security and improves environmental sustainability, yet there is currently no formal global recognition of the importance of animal welfare as part of the global development agenda.

“Livestock are essential to the survival of the world’s most vulnerable societies,” said Larry Roeder, Jr., U.N. affairs director for WSPA. “To help safeguard livestock and improve community resiliency, it is crucial to build a global partnership between the animal welfare community and the development community and to merge animal welfare issues into the U.N. global development agenda.”  

WSPA and its partners support a Universal Declaration on Animal Welfare at the United Nations. If adopted, it will be the first international agreement recognizing that animals are capable of experiencing pain and suffering and that their welfare should be respected.

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For further information, please contact:

Meryl Bailey, Communications Officer for WSPA Regional Office for United States
(617) 896-9291 / mbailey@wspausa.org

Larry Roeder, UN Affairs Director for WSPA
(703) 867-2056 / lroeder@wspausa.org