The  Pan African Rinderpest Campaign (PARC) which concluded in 1999 was replaced by a new programme, the Pan African Programme for the Control of Epizootics (PACE). The main aim of PACE is a surveillance of epizootic diseases in Africa to accurately determine their prevalence and impact on livestock production. This programme is the first continental epidemiology programme.

The five-year PACE programme covers 32 sub-Saharan countries. It is a 72 million EURO programme that is co-ordinated by the Inter-African Bureau of Animal Resources (IBAR) of the Organisation of African Unity (OAU), where most technical assistants will be posted. The programme includes national operations planned and implemented in each country and also sub-regional and regional support and co-ordination components.

Rinderpest has been apparently eradicated in many African countries, and these are progressively entering the OIE Pathway to certified freedom from disease and from infection. Foci of infection are, however, still present in Sudan and the Somali ecosystem. PARC's positive results offer a firm basis from which to finally eradicate rinderpest from Africa and to control other major epizootic diseases of livestock.

The Pan African Rinderpest Campaign (PARC)

The Pan African Rinderpest Campaign (PARC) was launched in 1986 in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia by Ministers Responsible for Animal Resources of OAU member states.

The coordination of PARC is carried out by the OAU-IBAR in Nairobi through two coordinations units in Bamako (for Western and Central Africa) and Nairobi (for Eastern Africa).

The two major objectives of the project are the following:

Eradication of Rinderpest from the African continent Improvement of animal health services by making provisions for future funding of such services through sector resources.