FAO, ECOWAS, AU-IBAR, WHO Convene Three-Day Capacity Building Workshop to Strengthen Regional Disease Surveillance, Advance PPR Eradication, and Boost Transboundary Disease Control. By Raymond Enoch
A major regional push to finally stamp out Peste des petits ruminants (PPR) in West Africa began today in Abuja, as veterinarians, epidemiologists, policymakers and regional experts convened for a high-level three-day capacity-building workshop aimed at transforming animal disease surveillance across the sub-region.
Backed by the European Union, the initiative brings together the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), the African Union Inter-African Bureau for Animal Resources (AU-IBAR), the AU Pan-African Veterinary Vaccine Centre (PANVAC), the World Organisation for Animal Health (WOAH) and Nigeria’s Federal Ministry of Livestock Development in a rare joint front to strengthen harmonized, participatory and risk-based surveillance systems.
With small ruminants serving as a lifeline for millions of households, speakers underscored that coordinated surveillance is no longer optional but vital for safeguarding rural economies and accelerating West Africa’s march toward the global target of PPR eradication by 2030.
Participants from across ECOWAS nations are examining new tools, cross-border protocols, and early-warning mechanisms to better detect and control transboundary animal diseases that threaten food security and regional stability.
The workshop signals a decisive regional shift from fragmented national responses to a unified, science-driven One Health strategy—one that places smallholder livelihoods, animal health, and sustainable agriculture at the heart of West Africa’s development agenda.
