Working Groups and Ad hoc Groups
MANDATES AND INTERNAL RULES FOR:
WORKING GROUPS AND AD HOC GROUPS,
REFERENCE LABORATORIES,
COLLABORATING CENTRES
Adopted by the OIE International Committee on 28 May 19931
First part
WORKING GROUPS AND AD HOC GROUPS
I. MANDATE
1. Working Groups of the Office International des Epizooties shall be established for an indefinite period in order to cover the technical or scientific topic specified at their establishment.
These Working Groups shall have as an essential mandate:
– to carry out, on the occasion of regular annual meetings, all the work necessary to collect, analyse, disseminate and assess progress in knowledge within the sphere of their competence.
– to inform the Director General of their results in order to improve services rendered to or to resolve problems experienced by Member Countries within their special sphere.
Working Groups shall operate according to the internal rules described below.
2. Ad hoc Groups of the Office International des Epizooties shall have a more limited competence than Working Groups, which is defined when they are set up. They function only for a specified period.
II. INTERNAL RULES OF WORKING GROUPS
Article 1
Working Groups shall be formed by decision of the Committee upon recommendation by the Director General.
Article 2
Each Working Group shall include a president, a rapporteur and a maximum of six members.
Article 3
Members shall be nominated by the Director General for a renewable period of three years. Observers may be invited at the initiative of the President.
Article 4
All members shall be specialists recognised at an international level, and shall be selected for their competence.
Article 5
At each annual General Session, the Director General shall report the composition of existing Working Groups, which he shall submit to the International Committee for approval.
Article 6
Each Group shall meet according to a timetable and agenda drawn up with the approval of the Director General.
Article 7
At the end of each meeting, the rapporteur of the Group shall provide the Director General with a report of the proceedings and any proposals drawn up by the Group.
The Group may be asked to present their report before the Committee.
Article 8
The Central Bureau shall be responsible for issuing invitations to attend meetings, and for correspondence between the Group and persons or organisations which it wishes to consult.
Article 9
The Central Bureau shall place at the disposal of the Group the necessary facilities, including translations and documentation, required for producing reports of its meetings.
III. INTERNAL RULES OF AD HOC GROUPS
Article 10
Ad hoc Groups shall be formed at the initiative of the Director General, who defines their purpose and the duration and means of execution of their task. Such instructions constitute the internal rules, which are valid for the duration of the Group’s function.
Second part
REFERENCE LABORATORIES
I. MANDATE2
Reference Laboratories of the Office International des Epizooties shall have as their principal mandate:
– to function as a centre of expertise and standardisation for a designated disease(s) or topics;
– to store and distribute to national laboratories biological reference products and any other reagents used in the diagnosis and control of the designated disease(s) or topics;
– to develop new procedures for diagnosis and control of the designated disease(s) or topics;
– to gather, process, analyse and disseminate epizootiological data relevant to their speciality;
– to place expert consultants at the disposal of the Office International des Epizooties.
They may also contribute to:
– provision of scientific and technical training for personnel from Member Countries of the Office;
– provision of diagnostic testing facilities to Member Countries;
In the case of positive results for diseases that are reportable to OIE, the Reference Laboratory should immediately inform the OIE Delegate of the Member Country from which the samples originated as well as the OIE Central Bureau;
– organisation of scientific meetings on behalf of the Office;
– coordination of scientific and technical studies in collaboration with other laboratories or organisations;
– publication and dissemination of any information in their sphere of competence which may be useful to Member Countries of the Office.
II. INTERNAL RULES3
Article 1
Applications for the title of Reference Laboratory of the Office International des Epizooties shall be submitted to the Director General by the Delegate of the Member Country to which the laboratory belongs or by the corresponding Regional Commission.
Article 2
Applications received shall be presented by the Director General to the Administrative Commission at its annual meetings, after consultation with the Biological Standards Commission or the Aquatic Animal Health Standards Commission, as appropriate [on the occasion of the Commission’s meetings]. Applications shall be selected solely on the basis of scientific and technical competence of the candidate establishment.
Article 3
Applications endorsed by the Commission shall be presented to the Committee for approval.
Article 4
The Director General shall notify approved laboratories of their designation as an ‘OIE Reference Laboratory’.
Article 5
This notification shall confer on the laboratory the right to use the title ‘OIE Reference Laboratory’ and the OIE emblem on all documents issued by the laboratory in its official capacity, and the right of the designated specialist within the laboratory to use the title of OIE Expert.
Article 6
OIE Experts exercise their function within the ‘rules applicable to OIE Experts’.
Article 7
The rights conferred by Article 5 upon a laboratory and an expert require full compliance with the Mandate of an OIE Reference Laboratory, within the limits of facilities available, and provision of a brief report of activities at the end of each calendar year of their mandate. This report will be distributed to all Member Countries.
Article 8
The designation shall be valid for four years, at the end of which the Director General may propose to the Committee that it be renewed. Either party may revoke the designation at any time.
Article 9
Any major change within the Laboratory which may impair its competence (particularly the retirement of a designated expert) shall be reported immediately to the Director General of the Office.
Third part
COLLABORATING CENTRES
I. MANDATE
Collaborating Centres of the Office International des Epizooties shall have as their mandate:
– to operate as a centre of research, expertise, standardisation and dissemination of techniques within their sphere of competence;
– to propose or develop any procedure which will facilitate harmonisation of international regulations applicable to the surveillance and control of animal diseases;
– to place expert consultants at the disposal of the Office International des Epizooties.
In addition they may:
– within their sphere of competence, provide scientific and technical training to personnel from Member Countries of the Office;
– organise scientific meetings on behalf of the Office;
– coordinate scientific and technical studies in collaboration with other Laboratories or organisations;
– publish and disseminate any information in their sphere of competence which may be useful to Member Countries of the Office.
II. INTERNAL RULES
Article 1
Applications for the title of Collaborating Centre of the Office International des Epizooties shall be submitted to the Director General by the Delegate of the Member Country to which the establishment belongs or by the corresponding Regional Commission.
Article 24
Applications received shall be presented by the Director General, after consultation with the appropriate Specialist Commission and Regional Commission, to the Administrative Commission at its meetings. Applications shall be selected solely on the basis of the scientific and technical competence of the candidate establishment.
Article 3
Applications endorsed by the Commission shall be presented to the Committee for approval.
Article 4
After approval by the Committee, a letter of notification shall be sent by the Director General to the Director of the Collaborating Centre.
Article 5
Notification shall entitle the Centre to use the name “OIE Collaborating Centre” and to use the OIE emblem on all documents issued by the Centre in its official capacity.
Article 6
The rights conferred by Article 5 shall require full compliance by the Collaborating Centre with its mandate, within the limits of facilities available, and provision of a brief annual report of its activities at the end of each calendar year of its mandate. This report will be distributed to all Member Countries.
Article 7
The designation ‘Collaborating Centre’ shall be valid for four years, at the end of which the Director General may propose to the Committee that it be renewed.
Either party may revoke this designation at any time.
Article 8
Any major change within a Collaborating Centre which may impair its competence (particularly changes in personnel and in material or financial resources) shall be reported immediately to the Director General of the Office.
__________________
1 Resolution No. XII of 28 May 1993.
2 Modified by the OIE International Committee (Resolution No XXVIII of 27 May 2004).
3 Modified by the OIE International Committee (Resolution No XX of 30 May 2002).
4 Modified by the OIE International Committee (Resolution No. IX of 30 May 1997).