Jakarta – The Ministry of Health through the Health Development Policy Agency (BKPK) is holding a... ASEAN Consultative Meeting on the Establishment of the ASEAN Laboratory Network (ALN), which will take place in Jakarta from December 8–10, 2025. This meeting marks a crucial step in ASEAN's efforts to build an integrated regional laboratory network to strengthen early detection, lab-based surveillance, risk assessment, and response to public health threats in the region.
Harditya Suryawanto, Head of the Center for Global Health Strategy and Governance Policy, in the committee report stated that this meeting was held to refine the draft. Terms of Reference (ToR) ALN and identify the technical requirements and coordination mechanisms needed to strengthen cross-country laboratory collaboration.
"Your presence ensures that the development of the ALN is inclusive, technically sound, and aligned with national realities and regional aspirations," he said.
The meeting was officially opened by the Head of the BKPK, Prof. Asnawi Abdullah, who emphasized that laboratories are a key pillar of the early warning and surveillance system for outbreak control. He emphasized the importance of harmonizing laboratory capacity across ASEAN to ensure rapid detection and a coordinated response, particularly to transnational threats.
"Through the ALN, we aspire to strengthen ASEAN's regional capacity in preventing, detecting, and responding to public health threats through a structured and inclusive network," said Prof. Asnawi on Monday (8/12).
He further explained that the establishment of the ALN also aims to carefully map and build core laboratory capacity across the region. This includes critical areas such as quality management systems, biosafety and biosecurity protocols, validated testing methods, external quality assessment and proficiency testing, robust referral mechanisms for specimens, and critical surge capacity in times of crisis.
Prof. Asnawi hopes that the participants of the activity can generate productive discussions and produce transformative decisions for the future development of ALN.
"Indonesia stands ready to work with you all, listening attentively, coordinating diligently, and acting decisively for our shared regional health security," he concluded.
The event was attended by ASEAN member countries, the ASEAN Secretariat, the ASEAN Centre for Public Health Emergencies and Emerging Diseases (ACPHEED), the ASEAN Coordinating Centre for Animal Health and Zoonoses (ACCAHZ), the ASEAN Centre for Biodiversity (ACB), the ASEAN Emergency Operations Centre (EOC) Network, the ASEAN Biothreats Surveillance Centre (ABVC), as well as international partner organizations such as WHO, FAO, WOAH, Gulf CDC, ECDC, US-CDC, UK-HSA, ASEAN-UK Health Security Partnership, JICA, ERIA, FIND, ACESO Global, Institut Pasteur, and other laboratory networks.
The first day of the meeting featured presentations from international organizations on successful laboratory networking models in various regions. The WHO and FAO highlighted the importance of connections and networks between human and animal health laboratories in addressing zoonotic threats, which contribute to the largest proportion of infectious disease cases.
ASEAN member states presented the status of their national laboratories, including the architecture of their national laboratory networks, diagnostic capacity, biosafety and biosecurity standards, and potential contributions to regional cooperation. This information serves as a crucial basis for ensuring that the ALN ToR reflects actual needs on the ground and can be implemented harmoniously across member states.
On the second day, participants took part in a discussion World Café The discussion explored key issues such as barriers to regional collaboration, priorities for technical capacity building, potential contributions from member countries, network governance models, and sustainability aspects of resource support. The results of these discussions were then presented in plenary sessions and focused discussions to refine the draft ToR in greater detail.
The discussion then continued with Focus Group Discussions (FGD) to deepen the concept and direction of ALN development as part of efforts to strengthen regional detection and surveillance capacity. Through this FGD, the Ministry of Health seeks to ensure that Indonesia's contribution to the ALN formation process aligns with national priorities, strengthening ACPHEED's position as a regional implementing entity, as well as encouraging the creation of a robust, connected, and responsive laboratory network to future health emergency threats.
The third day featured discussions with various international partners regarding opportunities for technical support, funding, and research collaboration that could strengthen the operationalization of the ALN. This multi-sectoral engagement demonstrated that strengthening the ASEAN laboratory network will require ongoing cross-sectoral and cross-national collaboration. (Author: Rita Ratna Puri, Editor: HDI Work Team)
