FAO refurbished the unit with modern electronic equipment/furniture and personnel trained and skilled in epidemiology disciplines.

Freetown – To complement the Government of Sierra Leona’s efforts to improve surveillance, reporting and control of infectious animal diseases, the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) handed over the newly created epidemiology unit to the Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry (MAF). With funding from the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) under the Global Health Security Agenda (GHSA), FAO refurbished the unit with modern electronic equipment/furniture and personnel trained and skilled in epidemiology disciplines. In addition, FAO donated two motorcycles and 25 mobile phones/tablets to the MAF to facilitate outbreak investigation and response to infectious diseases as well as real-time reporting.

The Veterinary Epidemiology Unit, within the Livestock and Veterinary Services Division of MAF, will have the responsibility to manage the Animal Health Information System as well as assess and manage disease risk. The unit is also responsible for collection, collation and analysis of data and generation and dissemination of epidemiological information for early warning.

FAO leads efforts to improve surveillance, reporting and control of infectious animal diseases. This unit complements the Integrated Animal Disease Surveillance and Reporting System (IADSR) to facilitate timely collection and submission of electronic animal health reports from the communities to the national level. With its support, FAO transformed animal disease surveillance and reporting in the country from the traditional paper based reporting system to a computerized electronic reporting system using advanced technologies. To bridge the huge gap of inadequate frontline personnel at community level, Community Animal Health Workers (CAHWs) that were initially not involved in surveillance and reporting were trained and integrated into the surveillance system. To improve the quality and timeliness of data collected by frontline personnel from the districts to the

Epidemiology Unit, FAO procured 25 mobile tablets/smart phones and trained users on Event Mobile Application (EMA-i), which will enable personnel to collect and transmit real-time georeferenced information on animal diseases from the districts to the national level. With a vibrant and revitalized disease surveillance system that tracks the occurrence of 20 priority animal diseases, routine animal health reporting performance from the community level to the national level has improved from 1 percent in 2018 to 80 percent in 2020. The Livestock and Veterinary Division of MAF is nowadays able to produce and share reliable and credible weekly animal health reports and bulletins for decision making to policy makers, One Health Platform, regional and international organizations including OIE, FAO and AU-IBAR. Mechanisms for timely feedback of information from National level to the districts and communities were established.

The handover ceremony took place at the Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry premises, under the chair of the Deputy Minister of Agriculture and Forestry, Dr. Abubakari Karim, who received the donation on behalf of Government. During the handover ceremony, the Chief Agricultural Officer, Mr. Amara Idara Sherriff expressed happiness that the livestock sector was receiving overwhelming boost from FAO. He said, “The country has always been challenged with serious animal disease threats. The recent experience of Ebola epidemic greatly ravaged the country,” He added “I am happy because FAO has established mechanisms for detecting zoonotic diseases. The Epidemiology Unit will be key to the Livestock Division in strengthening animal disease surveillance capacity, which will enhance the national public health systems in the country”. The FAO Representative, Madam Nyabenyi Tipo appreciated the good cooperation between MAF and FAO. She said that “I am happy because the Government of Sierra Leone prioritized agriculture as well as Livestock as an engine of socio-economic transformation in the country”. She added, “Protecting the health of animals through improved surveillance will also protect humans from zoonotic diseases”. She pledged FAO’s continued support to the Government of Sierra Leone. The Deputy Minister of Agriculture and Forestry, Dr. Abubakari Karim, who presided over the ceremony, applauded FAO for the tremendous support to the Government of Sierra Leone. He said, “This is a significant investment by FAO to the Livestock Sector in Sierra Leone. The country has always been at risk of infections from animal diseases due to weak veterinary services. Therefore, strengthening mechanisms for detection, reporting and responding to emerging and re-emerging diseases is timely.” The FAO Emergency Center for Transboundary Animal Diseases (ECTAD) Team Leader, Dr. Germain Bobo said, “timely generation and transmission of weekly animal health data from the communities to the national level is crucial in animal health surveillance. This is a huge success story for Sierra Leone. FAO worked together with the Livestock and Veterinary Services Division to achieve these goals. Other countries in the region have a lot to learn from our collaboration and our experience as well as the milestones”. The FAO in Sierra Leone with funding from the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) under the Global Health Security Agenda is supporting the country to address critical capacity gaps to deal with prevention, detection and response to endemic, emerging and remerging infectious disease threats and high impact zoonoses.

For more information, please contact:

Germain Bobo
Country Team Leader FAO Emergency Center for Transboundary Animal Diseases (ECTAD) Sierra Leone
Email: [email protected]

Yanira Santana
Regional Communications and Outreach Bureau FAO ECTAD Regional West and Central Africa
Email : [email protected]
Phone : +221 33 823 29 1