FAO Reference Centre for Veterinary Epidemiology
The FAO Reference Centre for Veterinary Epidemiology provides expertise in risk assessment, disease surveillance, and control. It contributes to the development of innovative methods and supports FAO and its Member Countries through research, missions, and training programmes.
In July 2012, the Institute was designated as the FAO Reference Centre for Veterinary Epidemiology. The Centre's mandate is to provide expertise and consultancy on veterinary epidemiology, with a particular focus on risk assessment and management methods and their applications, supporting FAO and its Member Countries.
Specifically, the Centre may be called upon to:
- Assess risks associated with animal diseases.
- Provide guidance on the design of data collection systems and the use of effective and innovative surveillance methods, following a One Health approach.
- Evaluate the performance of diagnostic tests in relation to surveillance system assessments.
- Assess risk mitigation options.
Additionally, the Centre makes its experts available to FAO, upon request, for meetings, workshops, missions, and other technical and scientific support activities. It also contributes to training and capacity-building initiatives in epidemiology, including those organised by other United Nations agencies or FAO Reference Centres.
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Designation 2012 FAO Reference Centre Veterinary Epidemiology (63 KB)
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Paolo Calistri
Head
Paolo Calistri has been working at the Istituto Zooprofilattico Sperimentale dell’Abruzzo e del Molise since 1995, where he currently serves as Head of the Epidemiology Laboratory and of the National Reference Centre for Veterinary Epidemiology, Planning, Information and Risk Analysis (COVEPI). He is also interim Head of both the Epidemiology, Risk Analysis and Information Unit and the Sample Reception and Quality Control Unit.
Paolo Calistri has been working at the Istituto Zooprofilattico Sperimentale dell’Abruzzo e del Molise since 1995, where he currently serves as Head of the Epidemiology Laboratory and of the National Reference Centre for Veterinary Epidemiology, Planning, Information and Risk Analysis (COVEPI). He is also interim Head of both the Epidemiology, Risk Analysis and Information Unit and the Sample Reception and Quality Control Unit.
Since September 2018, he has been Head of the FAO Reference Centre for Veterinary Epidemiology, and since March 2021, he has also been Head of the World Organisation for Animal Health (WOAH) Collaborating Centre for Epidemiology, Modelling and Surveillance.
From 2015 to 2024, he served as a member of the Animal Health and Animal Welfare (AHAW) Panel of the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA).
Paolo Calistri has taken part in numerous international research projects and initiatives focused on the prevention and control of animal diseases and zoonoses.
He is the author of over 130 scientific articles published in international journals.
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