Brunei Darussalam charts a national course for One Health with the Quadripartite

The world is getting more interconnected, and so are the challenges we face today and in the future. And in Brunei Darussalam, the line connecting human health, animal health and the health of the environment is not theoretical - it is a daily reality. Understanding this, the Quadripartite which includes members from the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP), the World Health Organization (WHO) and the World Organisation for Animal Health (WOAH) led a three-day national workshop in Brunei Darussalam to build a country-owned One Health plan for tackling health threats where humans, animals and the environment interconnect.

The Brunei Darussalam National One Health Joint Plan of Action Workshop brought together representatives from the Ministry of Health, Forestry Department and Department of Agriculture and Agrifood under the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry, Department of Environment, Parks and Recreation under the Ministry of Development, Ministry of Home Affairs and other key government agencies, including Ministry of Defense and the Prime Minister’s Office, represented by the Brunei Climate Change Office, Attorney General’s Chambers and Wawasan Office. Representatives from the Ministry of Education, Ministry of Religious Affairs, Brunei Darussalam Food Authority and Universiti Brunei Darussalam also participated. The workshop was further supported by technical representatives from the One Health Quadripartite, bringing together expertise across the human, animal, plant and environmental health sectors. 

Participants at the Brunei Darussalam National One Health Joint Plan of Action Workshop 2026.
Credit: MOH Brunei Darussalam

The case for this kind of collaboration has been built for years. Many emerging and re-emerging infectious diseases originate in animals, and the Asia-Pacific region has repeatedly been a source of concerning zoonotic threats. At the same time, the Triple Planetary Crisis of climate change, biodiversity loss, and pollution, is placing new strain on the ecosystems that human, animal and environmental health rely on.

Those pressures do not stay within institutional silos, and they cannot be solved within them either. Human health, animal health, ecosystem health, antimicrobial resistance and food security are, as the workshop's own framing put it, inextricably linked: a disruption to any one element can cascade through the whole system.

Participants reviewing the progress and challenges faced in terms of One Health coordination.
Credit: MOH Brunei Darussalam

From global framework to national action

The workshop did not start from a blank page. It built on the momentum generated through the National Bridging Workshop (NBW) held in 2025, followed by the One Health Zoonotic Disease Prioritization (OHZDP) Workshop held earlier this year. It also directly advances the work under the Quadripartite Global One Health Joint Plan of Action (OH JPA) and its accompanying Implementation Guide, which provides countries with tools to strengthen their national One Health architecture in a structured and systematic manner. The task for Brunei Darussalam was to translate this global blueprint into a practical national plan—one that reflects the country’s institutions, risk profile and priorities.

For Brunei Darussalam, the workshop offers something many countries are still working towards, a single, agreed national plan that gives every relevant ministry from Health and Home Affairs to Defence, Education, Religious Affairs and the Food Authority, a shared reference point for coordinating on zoonotic disease risk, antimicrobial resistance, food safety and ecosystem health. Institutionalizing that coordination mechanism, rather than relying on ad hoc cooperation, is the difference between managing the next health threat proactively and preventing it.

Because the national plan aligns with the ASEAN One Health Joint Plan of Action, Brunei Darussalam’s progress contributes directly to regional preparedness. Strengthening One Health architecture at national level strengthens ASEAN’s collective ability to detect and respond to zoonotic threats before they cross borders.

Brunei Darussalam’s plan is also a country-level operationalization of the Quadripartite One Health Joint Plan of Action, translating the shared framework of FAO, UNEP, WHO and WOAH into national action. Together, these efforts help advance the multisectoral resilience needed to achieve the 2030 Sustainable Development Goals and strengthen the links between health, food security and environmental sustainability.

This work would not have been possible without sustained Quadripartite collaboration, including joint technical leadership, staff expertise and global frameworks, alongside the continued support of the United Kingdom’s Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office (UKFCDO).

The workshop's conclusions are only the midpoint of the process. In the coming months, the One Health project team and government counterparts will finalize the resulting document, build out a monitoring and evaluation framework and a financing model and chart out the final steps needed before the Brunei Darussalam National One Health Action Plan moves from paper to practice.