ECDC website

Our work in 2020 /

Working with EU institutions and Member States

The Centre has been working and liaising closely with EU and EEA Member States and EU Institutions. The Centre provided the Health Security Committee (HSC), the European Commission, the Council and the European Parliament with scientific advice and guidance and gave regular updates and technical support on questions related to COVID-19. Collaboration with other Agencies was intensified during the COVID-19 pandemic, particularly with EMA regarding work on vaccines, and with EASA, EMSA and ERA in the development of joint technical documents and guidance on travel.

More in detail, ECDC operates as the hub of a network organisation. Most of the resources ECDC draws on for disease prevention and control – including public health laboratories and disease experts – are located at the Member States’ national public health institutes and associated academic bodies. The Centre’s key partners are the Coordinating Competent Bodies (CCB) and ECDC’s official national counterpart organisations, formally appointed by Member States.

ECDC supported Member States and the European Commission by providing the scientific background necessary to help Member States take complex decisions in these unprecedented times. It gave regular updates and technical support, but weekly meetings and video conferences also took place with the Directorate-General for Health and Food Safety at both the strategic and the operational levels. Moreover, ECDC participated in the annual European Health Forum Gastein, which provides a platform for discussions within the field of public health and healthcare for policymakers and public health professionals.

In 2020, the Centre organised a virtual session for around 200 participants on the potential of data in light of the pandemic, and early lessons learned with speakers from Member States, the European Commission and the WHO.

Country support

The different external evaluations of ECDC explicitly recommend to ‘get closer to the countries’. A better understanding of the variety of public health systems, and a systematic assessment of Member States’ vulnerabilities and needs will allow a more strategic investment of ECDC resources, to decrease the capacity and capability gaps across the EU.

The key activities performed in 2020 focused on two tracks and included:

  • Internal ECDC planning to increase ECDC efficiency and efficacy in working with the EU/EEA Member States;
  • Follow up on pending requests received through the annual calls 2017 and 2018.