Foreword

Foreword by the Chair of the Management Board

Last year was the first year ECDC was implementing its Strategy 2021-2027. Although the pandemic hampered its implementation, ECDC delivered 74% of the outputs planned in its Single Programming Document 2021–2023. Nine percent of the planned outputs were postponed to 2022, while 16% were delayed or had not yet started at the year-end 2021.

I would like to highlight some of the Centre’s non-COVID-19 achievements:

ECDC held its Third Joint Strategy Meeting with key stakeholders in the period June-September 2021, with a series of workshop discussions in the areas of digitalisation of EU surveillance, ECDC role in the prevention, EU standards for emergency preparedness, ECDC’s role in the global health security, and getting closer to the EU Member States. This meeting series provided an excellent opportunity for open and strategic discussions between ECDC and its main stakeholders and will guide the implementation of the ECDC amended mandate in the future.

ECDC Fellowship Programme was successfully transformed to virtual training and cohorts 2020 and 2021 received their training modules as planned. In 2021, 33 fellows graduated, and at the year-end 71 fellows were enrolled (33 from cohort 2020 and 38 from cohort 2021).

ECDC Communication Policy 2022-2027 was developed, and the MB approved it in their meeting in November. This was an important milestone, as the ECDC role in communicating to the general public had been debated in the MB several times over the years. With the agreement on the Communication Policy, general public becomes one of the ECDC‘s target audiences. A convincing approach to communication is a strong force against misinformation and scepticism towards scientific evidence.

As regards ECDC work supporting EU/EEA Member States and the EU Institutions in the COVID-19 response, the Centre conducted and published 22 rapid risk/outbreak assessments (RRA/ROA), half of which (11) to assess different phases and developments in the COVID-19 pandemic. In 2021 ECDC continued to produce the maps in support of the Council Recommendation on a coordinated approach to travel measures in the EU, published also on the ECDC website.

Also related to the ECDC COVID-19 work, the MB approved an amended annual work plan 2021 two times and amended financing decision four times. Furthermore, the MB gathered for an extraordinary meeting to discuss the ECDC grant based programme in support to the HERA Incubator, for the EU/EEA Member States to strengthen their capacities and capabilities for whole genome sequencing (WGS) before finalising the budget decisions.

Finally, the ECDC Management Board continued to follow up the negotiations on the ECDC amended Founding Regulation. Since the political agreement on the text has been reached, it is now awaiting adoption. Implementation of the amended mandate will challenge both the staff of the ECDC and the MB and provide a unique opportunity to make the Agency fit for the demands of the future.

Dr Anni-Riitta Virolainen-Julkunen
Chair of the ECDC Management Board
2 March 2022