In July, the Action Plan for the recommendations from the joint Joint External Evaluation and Public Health Emergency Preparedness Assessment (JEE‑PHEPA) report was submitted to the Dutch House of Representatives. The plan sets out how the Netherlands will implement the international recommendations, including in the areas of biosafety and biosecurity. To further elaborate on these recommendations and the Action Plan, the Biosecurity Office organised a broad expert meeting on 2 September.
Recommendations for biosafety and biosecurity
The 2025 JEE/PHEPA report contains five key recommendations for biosafety and biosecurity. It advises that, within one year, the responsible ministries should be designated for establishing and implementing a biosecurity regulatory framework, including a competent supervisory authority. In addition, a clear national biosecurity policy should be developed. The report also recommends drawing up a national list of high‑risk pathogens, linked to a national oversight system. Furthermore, it calls for stronger integration of biosecurity and dual‑use concepts into life sciences curricula, and proposes introducing the role of a Biorisk Management Advisor (BMA), responsible for biosafety, biosecurity and dual use.
The Action Plan sets out the intended follow‑up for each recommendation. As part of this process, the Ministry of Health, Welfare and Sport (VWS) has asked the Biosecurity Office to advise on the development of a national biosecurity list, taking into account the JEE/PHEPA recommendations.
Expert meeting
On the morning of Wednesday 2 September, the Biosecurity Office organised an expert meeting to discuss the recommendations. Among the more than 20 participants were representatives of the BVF platform, the Royal Dutch Society for Microbiology (KNVM) and the Dutch Society for Medical Microbiology (NVMM), as well as participants from universities, university medical centres and veterinary institutes.
During the half‑day session, all five recommendations on biosafety and biosecurity capacity were discussed, the Action Plan was presented, and participants’ views, concerns and suggestions were collected. This input will be incorporated into the final advice, which will be submitted to the Ministry of Health, Welfare and Sport in the last quarter of this year.
https://open.overheid.nl/details/b77f9cac-a049-409c-a008-79f29e426671