Be the first to comment!National Animal Welfare Strategy public consultation launched
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A public consultation on the preparation of a National Animal Welfare Strategy has been launched on Thursday.
The launch was made by Minister for Agriculture, Fisheries and Animal Rights Anton Refalo, together with Parliamentary Secretary for Fisheries, Aquaculture and Animal Rights Alicia Bugeja Said
“This public consultation is giving the opportunity for all stakeholders to continue to voice their concerns in support of animal rights. I believe that a number of crucial points will emerge from this process, and these will eventually be included into the national policy,” said Minister Refalo.
He highlighted the need of focusing on the issues at hand, stating that today’s launch is a result of months of work with relevant stakeholders. He also mentioned how in the past two years, there were various discussions held with those involved in the sector.
Parliamentary Secretary Bugeja Said said that, “Animals are beautiful and complex creatures that have different needs based on their species, breed and role in society.”
The aim of this public consultation is to gather information and opinions from the public and relevant stakeholders to guide the drafting of a National Animal Welfare Strategy.
Some of this public consultation’s objectives include:
• To review current animal welfare measures.
• To consult activists, NGO’s, local councils, sanctuaries, and farmers with the aim of exploring how these entities can be supported and work together with public authorities to improve animal welfare.
• To acknowledge the role of primary producers and work to prevent disproportionate burdens being placed upon them.
• To consider an increase in animal welfare measures within Malta focusing on groomers, boarding kennels, trainers, and other related professions, to assess whether more needs to be done to increase the level of legal protection for certain species of animals.
The Ministry said that it will be organising a number of public consultation sessions during the AGRIFAIR that will be held between the 20th and 22nd May at MFCC, Ta’ Qali. All those interested in attending these public consultation sessions can register by calling 22924203.
The public consultation document can be accessed on: https://meae.gov.mt/en/Public_Consultations/MAFA/Pages/Consultations/PublicconsultationonthepreparationofaNationalAnimalWelfareStrategy.aspx. The Public Consultation will close on the 17th of June.
