With the present procurement, EFSA aims to create a ‘coordination team’ to supervise and harmonize activities in up to nine geographic areas (surveillance nodes) which will be supported by several FPAs to be established in the context of a call for proposals launched by EFSA. The objectives of the contract resulting from this procurement procedure are as follows:

• to coordinate the network of surveillance nodes;

• to organise network activities and communication;

• to provide training and guidance on the fieldwork and laboratory analyses to be conducted;

• to support the beneficiaries’ production of deliverables;

• to collect screening and whole genome sequencing data from the surveillance nodes;

• to analyse, collate, interpret and present the data collected to the public;

• to create an open-access platform for the communication of these outputs.

EFSA’s Biological Hazards and Animal Health and Welfare (BIOHAW) Unit regularly collects information from European countries on detections of highly pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI) viruses in domestic and wild birds, and more recently also in mammals. Based on data collected through the Animal Disease Notification System (ADIS) of the European Commission and the World Animal Health Information System (WAHIS) of the World Organisation for Animal Health (WOAH), as well as data voluntarily submitted by European countries to EFSA, regular updates on the avian influenza situation in Europe and worldwide are provided. In addition, EFSA also collects, compiles and analyses information on countries’ legally required and voluntary surveillance activities.