Circular 04: Vietnam’s regulations on 07 reporting regimes for aquatic animal diseases

According to Article 5 of Circular No. 04/2016/TT-BNNPTNT of the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development of Vietnam, there are 07 reporting regimes for aquatic animal diseases, specifically as follows:

1. Ad-hoc report on outbreak of disease:

- The facility owner, veterinarians, aquaculture professionals, or individuals who detect aquatic animals with diseases, high mortality, or signs of illness must report to the local veterinary staff (referred to as the commune veterinary staff) and the nearest commune-level People's Committee or the specialized veterinary agency for aquaculture.

- The commune veterinary staff, upon receiving the report, is responsible for visiting the location where the diseased or deceased aquatic animals are present or show signs of illness to verify the information and report to the District-level Veterinary Station (referred to as the Veterinary Station) and the commune-level People's Committee.

- The Veterinary Station shall conduct disease investigation and verification at the facility and report the results to the provincial-level Department of Veterinary (referred to as the Department of Veterinary) and the district-level People's Committee.

- The Department of Veterinary shall report the occurrence of the disease to the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development, the regional Veterinary Authority, and the Veterinary Bureau.

- The regional Veterinary Authority shall compile and report the situation of aquatic animal diseases in the area to the Veterinary Bureau.

- The Veterinary Bureau shall report to the Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development and other international organizations of which Vietnam is a member or committed to reporting.

Note: Reports on outbreaks or new diseases must be made within 48 hours for communes in the delta region or 72 hours for communes in remote or mountainous areas, from the time of detection or receipt of information about diseased or potentially diseased aquatic animals. Reports can be made by phone, in person, by sending documents, or by sending emails to the relevant veterinary authorities.

2. Reports on update of the outbreak situation:

- Before 12:00 PM daily, the commune veterinary staff shall report to the Veterinary Station and the commune-level People's Committee regarding the confirmed outbreak situation.

- Before 4:00 PM daily, the Veterinary Station shall report to the Department of Veterinary and the district-level People's Committee.

- Before 3:00 PM every Friday, the Department of Veterinary shall consolidate and report the disease situation of the week to the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development, the regional Veterinary Authority, and the Veterinary Bureau.

- Update reports on the outbreak situation continue until the outbreak ends, including holidays and days off.

3. Report on the end of the outbreak: Within 07 days after the end of the outbreak as regulated by the law, the Department of Veterinary is responsible for reporting the summary of the outbreak, evaluating the results of disease prevention and control.

4. Report on outbreak investigation:

- The outbreak investigation report is applicable when the outbreak has been determined by the aquatic veterinary authority as a disease listed in the list of aquatic animal diseases that must be announced or as a new disease.

- The Department of Veterinary is responsible for reporting the results of the outbreak investigation to the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development, the regional Veterinary Authority, and the Veterinary Bureau immediately after the investigation is completed.

5. Report on new diseases:

- The Department of Veterinary shall report to the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development, the regional Veterinary Authority, and the Veterinary Bureau on the spread of the disease.

- The Veterinary Bureau shall report to the Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development on the disease situation.

6. Periodic reports:

- Monthly reports: The data is compiled to report from the 1st to the last day of the month. Reports must be submitted in both written and electronic formats as follows: Veterinary Stations shall report to the Department of Veterinary before the 10th of the following month; the Department of Veterinary shall report to the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development, the regional Veterinary Authority, and the Veterinary Bureau before the 15th of the following month.

- Reports for the first 6 months of the year must be submitted before July 15th; the data is compiled to report from January 1st to June 30th.

- Annual reports must be submitted before January 15th of the following year; the data is compiled to report from January 1st to December 31st.

7. Report on disease surveillance results:

- Departments of Veterinary shall report to the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development, the regional Veterinary Authority, and the Veterinary Bureau on the results of disease surveillance, disease forecasting, and disease prevention and control measures at the local level.

- The Veterinary Bureau shall report to the Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development on the results of disease surveillance, disease forecasting, and disease prevention and control measures nationwide.

Note: Reports on disease surveillance results must be made within 10 days from the end of the surveillance program.

View more details at Circular No. 04/2016/TT-BNNPTNT of the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development of Vietnam, effective from July 01, 2016.

Ty Na

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