Germany declared health security to be a core issue of the German G7 presidency in 2015 and G20 presidency in 2017. As part of its "International Health Security Strategy", the German Federal Ministry of Health developed a catalogue of activities to meet the particular challenges in the field of international health protection sustainably.

The Information Centre for International Health Protection (INIG) was founded at the Robert Koch Institute in early 2018 as one of these activities. The central task of the Information Centre is to establish structures and methods within the Institute that enable sustainable development of the core competencies in the field of international health protection at the RKI. This initiative will strengthen Germany's commitment and visibility in the prevention and control of international health threats.

Tasks

INIG is divided into two functional areas: Public Health Intelligence and International Cooperation. To improve the detection and assessment of international health events and to support the Federal Ministry of Health in its decision-making with regard to issues of global concern, the Public Health Intelligence division regularly carries out evaluations and issues comprehensive information reports.

The functional area for International Cooperation identifies potential cooperation partners in the fields of communicable and non-communicable diseases to facilitate information exchange and pitch joint projects. This will strengthen German commitment to the strategic development and implementation of national expertise in the field of international health protection and increase the visibility of Germany's activities in the field of health hazard prevention and control.

The Centre cooperates closely with already established structures within the RKI and promotes further synergies. This allows for consolidation of the expertise available at the RKI and facilitates its use for activities in international cooperation in a focused and targeted way.