Vanuatu National Biosecurity Policy 2016-2030.

The Vanuatu National Biosecurity Policy 2016-2030 is a cross-sectoral policy that sets the overall direction on managing pests, diseases, and weeds affecting agriculture and the environment, facilitating trade and safeguarding human health through food safety inspections.
The policy seeks to enable more inclusive and efficient agricultural and food systems by facilitating border control and trade. The scope of the policy is: a) To safeguard Vanuatu border from entry of foreign pests and diseases to our shores; b) To ensure Vanuatu internal border mechanisms are functioning to manage movement of pest and disease from within our islands; c) Establish effective monitoring and surveillance systems; and d) Facilitate trade of Vanuatu’s agro-products with external markets. 1) Institutional set up and governance. Offices will be established in Port Vila, Luganville, Tanna, Aneityum, Malekula, and Sola on Vanua Lava. Work will be focused on ensuring adequate facilities, equipment and a competent workforce that will be needed to provide efficient and effective services. 2) Border Management. A team of dedicated officers will be trained with proper skills, equipment and financing to keep Vanuatu free from all harmful organisms. 3) Trade Facilitation. To improve and maintain market access for Vanuatu products efforts will be made to facilitate and enhance trade between Vanuatu and its trading partners focusing also on market access negotiations, import risk assessments, inspection, treatment and certification. 4) Meat Inspection. To maintain high standards in meat inspection and monitoring efforts will be focused on providing appropriate level of training, equipment, and tools to the officers carrying out inspection services. 5) Veterinary Service. To ensure an efficient and effective veterinary service effective strategies coupled with continuous training will be instituted to manage zoonotic diseases including containment and eradication of unwanted organisms. 6) Plant Health. Border vigilance and regular surveillance and monitoring on all the major producing islands will be constantly observed. 7) Pesticides and industrial chemicals Management. Better management mechanisms must be established in this regard. 8) Value of Services. Special focus will be paid to the delivery aspect of services striving to provide services that are efficiently delivered and meet the expectations of the client. 9) Financing. Work will be focused on adopting prudent financial management strategies to maximise the use of the allocated annual budget. 10) Establishing Biosecurity Vanuatu as a state-owned Corporation 11) Linkages and Obligations: National, Regional and International. Biosecurity Vanuatu will work to establish linkages with national and international institutions to promote mutual understanding on biosecurity measures and establish cooperation to improve trading relations. 12) Research. Biosecurity Vanuatu will undertake its own research to find out what pest organisms are present in the country and to explore best methods of managing these organisms.
The policy also seeks to promote the equitable use of natural resources by women and other marginalized groups by recognizing the importance of including gender issues in workforce. Further, the policy seeks to increase the resilience of livelihoods to disasters by asking for collaborative efforts by all stakeholders to mitigate against damages caused by pests and disease due to climatic conditions resulting from climate change.
Regarding governance, Biosecurity Vanuatu (previously known as the Department of Vanuatu Quarantine and Inspection Services) is responsible for the policy implementation. The Department will also develop monitoring and evaluations systems to measure progress and will include them into the Biosecurity Vanuatu operating procedures.