Dr. Komal graduated from the Faculté de médecine vétérinaire at the Université de Montréal in Saint-Hyacinthe, Quebec, with a degree in Veterinary Medicine and a post-graduate degree in Veterinary Microbiology. He began his veterinary career specializing in small animals in a practice in the Eastern Townships of the province of Quebec.
In 1994, Dr. Komal joined the Public Service as a Veterinary Inspector as well as a Laboratory Supervisor in Atlantic Canada. In 2000, Dr. Komal and his family moved to Ottawa where he held various positions of increasing responsibility within the Canadian Food Inspection Agency (CFIA) and other departments, such as Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada (AAFC) and Health Canada. Most recently, he worked as the Executive Director of the Animal Health Directorate within the Policy and Programs Branch of the CFIA.
Currently, Dr. Komal is the Vice President (VP) of the CFIA’s Science Branch, as well as and Canadian Delegate to the World Organisation for Animal Health (OIE) and Chief Veterinary Officer (CVO) for Canada. In his VP position, Dr. Komal manages the branch that provides laboratory services and scientific advice in support of development and delivery of the CFIA’s programs, as well as surveillance and regulatory research to identify and address emerging threats to the food system and to animal and plant health.
As the OIE Delegate, Dr. Komal represents Canada on the international stage, and plays an integral role in Canada’s participation in the OIE’s standard setting process for the development and adoption of animal health standards and guidelines. It is his role to ensure that the standards are appropriately and consistently implemented in Canada, and he is responsible for notifying the OIE of reportable animal disease occurrences in Canada.
As the CVO, Dr. Komal leads Canada’s efforts to effectively manage current and emerging disease threats in order to protect animal and human health, and to maintain international trust in Canada’s inspection and certification systems in support of market access.