In the event of sudden disease outbreak, immediate air travel restrictions will most likely be imposed. These create a huge impact on the functioning of the global airline industry. To respond more effectively, such situations call for long-term strategies, rather than immediate stop-gap arrangements.
For this reason, the ASEF Public Health Network organised a Strategy Development Workshop on Preparedness for Pandemics and Public Health Emergencies in the Passenger Air Transport Sector in Budapest (15-16 December 2011).
Inclusion of social media for risk communication, improvement of surveillance and response systems, and the establishment of partnerships and networking among different actors – these are some of the recommendations from that workshop. The complete list of recommendations will be shared at a Public Briefing in Brussels on 2 February 2012 at the Renaissance Brussels Hotel.
The Budapest workshop was attended by 18 representatives from different sectors, including the government, airport authorities, airline industries, and various international agencies in Asia and Europe. The workshop used ASEF-ASAP (Accurate Scenarios Active Preparedness) scenarios to develop strategies for pandemic preparedness in the air transport sector. Participants discussed how the pandemic preparedness and response plans can be strengthened by using ASEF-ASAP scenarios.
This event was organised with technical support from Lufthansa and Prospex and funding support from the Government of Japan.
