Engaging Young Professionals in Veterinary Public Good

Veterinary Services deliver public good functions that underpin animal health, public health, food security, safe trade and environmental protection. These include disease surveillance, outbreak response, food safety, antimicrobial stewardship and emergency preparedness. While public Veterinary Services lead many of these functions, private veterinarians – particularly those working with livestock – also play an essential role through preventive medicine, disease detection, biosecurity and raising awareness on zoonotic diseases and antimicrobial resistance. 

The demographics of the veterinary workforce are changing, as are the priorities of veterinary professionals worldwide. At the same time, complex global trends, like the digitalisation of work, climate change risks on animal welfare and social equity, human health risks from zoonoses, and increasing antimicrobial resistance, have also influenced the animal health professions across the globe. Rather than reacting, the veterinary sector has the opportunity to work creatively to help shape animal healthcare. As the future workforce, young people are at the forefront of these emerging futures.

Changing veterinary workforce demographics

Although the veterinary workforce is relatively young overall (e.g. median age of 44 years in Europe; 41.2 in Mexico), shortages are emerging in rural practice, food animal medicine and public veterinary services, as experienced veterinarians are approaching retirement in many countries and young veterinarians show less interest in this sector [1-2]. This declining interest in rural practice is multifactorial. Compared with urban practice, rural veterinarians generally experience longer working hours, greater on-call responsibilities and heavier workloads, while limited access to childcare, healthcare, recreation and employment opportunities for their partners can make rural practice less attractive and compatible with family life [3]. In the United States of America, only 3.3% of new graduates enter food animal practice [4], and the United Kingdom remains heavily reliant on overseas veterinarians to deliver meat inspection and official veterinary services. 

Securing sustainable career pathways is a particular challenge in many low- and middle-income countries, where the expansion of veterinary and veterinary para-professional (VPP) training has increased graduate numbers, but employment opportunities have not kept pace. Many young professionals face unemployment or underemployment (e.g. part-time, unpaid or poorly paid work) and report feeling ill-prepared for practice because of limited practical training, confidence and business skills needed to establish sustainable animal health services [5]. 

Career retention is also a challenge. In high-income countries, poor work-life balance, high workloads and dissatisfaction with working conditions contribute to high attrition among early-career veterinarians. The UK parliament’s recently commissioned report ‘A Sustainable Veterinary Workforce’ highlights that 45% of veterinarians leaving the profession had practised for four years or less [6], exacerbating workforce shortages in key sectors.  

In parallel, the profession has become increasingly feminised in western countries. However, significant gender pay disparities persist and women are underrepresented in key leadership roles (only a quarter of Chief Veterinary Officers worldwide are women) [7]. The veterinary workforce in much of the Global South remains predominantly male, although female enrolment in veterinary education is steadily increasing, particularly in Asia. The feminisation of the profession also highlights the need to examine whether veterinary workplaces reflect changing workforce demographics. Redesigning veterinary workforce systems with women in mind, both as service users and service providers, involves ongoing negotiation and adaptation, particularly regarding shifting values, family-friendly policies, equitable career progression and leadership styles. 

Using foresight and innovation to support the next generation

In 2024, the World Organisation for Animal Health (WOAH) undertook its first direct youth engagement initiative in Africa with 80 young people from over 16 African countries [8]. The initiative included three Youth Futures Workshops – two online (English and French) and one in‑person in Nairobi – building on WOAH’s 91st annual General Session in May 2024, ‘Is WOAH Ready for the Future?’, with International Veterinary Students Association (IVSA) representatives. 

The consultation process used guided foresight practices to identify emerging trends and disruptions in the veterinary sector and explore possible scenarios and solutions resulting from those. The major themes emerging from these analyses – key challenges, opportunities for innovation, and critical dilemmas shaping veterinary workforce development – were presented at the Africa Continental Conference 2024 on workforce development. 

The participating young professionals called for innovation and adaptability related to climate change, rural/urban shifts, demographic changes, financial sustainability and adaptation to digitalisation. They requested that Veterinary Services involve young people in workforce planning, and highlighted how important attention to gender equality, as well as mental health and well-being, were for Veterinary Services planning and management. 

The project also highlighted how valuable it is for Veterinary Services to actively engage the next generation of veterinary personnel in workforce planning, both to help address blind spots and ensure that organisational structures and resources are designed with them in mind.  

Other solution-oriented approaches include global or national Grand Challenges which involve students, entrepreneurs and researchers in developing transdisciplinary solutions to complex challenges, such as in India [9].  

Building pathways for the next generation

Countries are already demonstrating practical ways to strengthen the transition from education to employment while increasing the contribution of young professionals to Veterinary Services. 

Structured entry into practice is essential. Through WOAH’s Professionalisation of Veterinary Para-professionals Project (P3V) a sustainable internship model was developed for VPP students in Togo, Senegal and Benin. VPP training institutes signed collaboration agreements with the national veterinary statutory body along with the veterinary and VPP associations, who then matched students with practising veterinarians and VPPs for internships. An independent evaluation found this to be one of the programme’s most impactful interventions [10], with students reporting greater confidence, stronger practical skills and improved readiness for professional practice. 

Regulatory reform can also unlock new career pathways. In South Africa, reforms introduced in 2022 enabled animal health technicians to establish independent primary animal health care facilities within a defined scope of practice [11]. This not only expanded access to veterinary services in underserved areas but also created new employment opportunities for young professionals. 

Several countries have introduced initiatives to encourage young veterinarians to work in underserved areas, including rural service programmes (India and Nigeria), compulsory community service (South Africa), and financial incentive schemes such as New Zealand’s Voluntary Bonding Scheme and the USDA Veterinary Medicine Loan Repayment Program. 

Mentorship programmes linking experienced professionals with recent graduates can also help young professionals build their confidence, expand their network and establish sustainable careers, as evidenced in Uganda and Nigeria under the VPP mentorship programme of the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) [12]. 

Both the medical and dental professions face similar challenges in recruiting and retaining young professionals in rural areas. Systematic reviews [13-14] of the human health workforce have shown that financial incentives alone are generally less effective at improving long-term rural retention than preferential selection of students from rural backgrounds, early exposure to rural practice during training and broader multifaceted support strategies.  

Looking ahead

Enabling a competent and motivated workforce requires more than increasing graduate numbers. It requires creating a supportive environment in which young veterinarians and VPPs can build meaningful, sustainable careers. This means designing education around emerging workforce needs, supporting transition into employment, recognising that public and private Veterinary Services are complementary in delivering public good, and fostering workplaces that prioritise dignity, well-being [15] and inclusion.  

Flexible working models, attention to well-being, gender equality, family-friendly/part-time policies and meaningful opportunities for young people to shape education and workforce planning will be essential to attracting and retaining the next generation of professionals.  

Young professionals should not simply be viewed as the future of Veterinary Services: they are already an essential part of today’s workforce. By involving them in workforce planning, investing in their development and creating opportunities for contribution, countries can build Veterinary Services that are more resilient, innovative and responsive to the challenges ahead. 

Main image: ©simonkr, Getty Images

References  

[1] Federation of Veterinarians of Europe (FVE). Workforce distribution and shortage of veterinarians. Brussels (Belgium): FVE; 2023. Available at: https://fve.org/cms/wp-content/uploads/Shortage_Vets_2023_R12-1.pdf (accessed on 23 July 2026). 

[2] Secretaría de Economía. Veterinarios y zootecnistas. Mexico City (Mexico): Data Mexico; 2026. Available at: https://www.economia.gob.mx/datamexico/en/profile/occupation/veterinarios-y-zootecnistas (accessed on 23 July 2026). 

[3] Thio SMP, Quain A. ‘It’s already hard and it’s nearing impossible’: a thematic analysis of submissions by rural veterinarians to the NSW Parliamentary Inquiry into the veterinary workforce shortage. Vet. Sci. 2025;12(1):69. https://doi.org/10.3390/vetsci12010069  

[4] American Veterinary Medical Association (AVMA). Veterinary colleges build educational pipelines to food animal, rural medicine. Schaumburg (IL, United States of America): AVMA; 2024. Available at: https://www.avma.org/news/veterinary-colleges-build-educational-pipelines-food-animal-rural-medicine (accessed on 23 July 2026). 

[5] Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO). Veterinary paraprofessional training and business environment needs assessment. Rome (Italy): FAO; 2025. Available at: https://openknowledge.fao.org/items/b40e9b40-5725-4551-b875-a83af404ef92 (accessed on 23 July 2026). 

[6] Environment, Food and Rural Affairs Committee. A sustainable veterinary workforce. First Report of Session 2026–27. London (United Kingdom): House of Commons; 2026. Available at: https://committees.parliament.uk/publications/53413/documents/298585/default/ (accessed on 23 July 2026). 

[7] Hamilton K, Fevre S, Häsler B, Rushton J. Who wants to be a chief veterinary officer (CVO)? Thoughts on promoting leadership diversity in the public veterinary sector. Front. Vet. Sci. 2022;9:937718. https://doi.org/10.3389/fvets.2022.937718 

[8] World Organisation for Animal Health (WOAH). Youth Perspectives on Futures of the Veterinary Workforce in Africa: Youth foresight report. Paris (France): WOAH; 2025. Available at: https://rr-africa.woah.org/app/uploads/2025/02/Youth-futures-report2025-WOAH.pdf (accessed on 23 July 2026). 

[9] Startup India. Seeding Agri Innovations – Agriculture Grand Challenge. New Delhi (India): Startup India; 2026. Available at: https://www.startupindia.gov.in/content/sih/en/bloglist/blogs/Innovations_Agritech_AGC.html (accessed on 23 July 2026). 

[10] World Organisation for Animal Health (WOAH). Summary of the P3V webinar (2/5): key impacts, learnings and lessons after five years of implementation. Paris (France): WOAH; 2025. Available at: https://rr-africa.woah.org/en/news/summary-of-the-p3v-webinar-2-5-key-impacts-learnings-and-lessons-after-five-years-of-implementation/  (accessed on 23 July 2026). 

[11] South African Veterinary Council (SAVC). New rules for para-veterinary professions set to be a game-changer for animal healthcare in South Africa. Pretoria (South Africa): SAVC; 2023. Available at: https://savc.org.za/new-rules-for-para-veterinary-professions-set-to-be-a-game-changer-for-animal-healthcare-in-sa/ (accessed on 23 July 2026). 

[12] Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO). Mentorship model for veterinary paraprofessionals. Rome (Italy): FAO; 2025. Available at: https://openknowledge.fao.org/items/eab6ba8f-4d97-4eea-8059-3df5c5e9ca23 (accessed on 23 July 2026). 

[13] Russell D, Mathew S, Fitts M, Liddle Z, Murakami-Gold L, Campbell N, et al. Interventions for health workforce retention in rural and remote areas: a systematic review. Hum. Resour. Health. 2021;19:103. https://doi.org/10.1186/s12960-021-00643-7  

[14] Kumar S, Clancy B. Retention of physicians and surgeons in rural areas – what works? J. Public Health (Oxf.). 2021;43(4):e689-700. https://doi.org/10.1093/pubmed/fdaa031  

[15] Holowaychuk, M. Reframing veterinary wellbeing as a strategic workforce priority. Paris (France): World Organisation for Animal Health; 2026. Available at: https://theanimalecho.woah.org/en/reframing-veterinary-wellbeing-as-a-strategic-workforce-priority/ (accessed on 23 July 2026).