Capacity building on the One Health approach in West Africa

Dakar, Senegal – The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) organized an online course on "Introduction to One Health" from 20 November to 20 December 2025. This online course offered in French by the FAO Virtual Learning Centre for West Africa has been designed to raise awareness of the One Health approach, strengthen technical skills and encourage collaboration between professionals from animal health, public health, food security and environmental management.

This course particularly targets government officials, practitioners from different sectors as well as medical and veterinary students who play a key role in the implementation of the One Health approach. This online course combines different modalities including two live webinars, interactive modules and discussion forums offering the opportunity to exchange experiences with peers and experts from the sub-region.

Thus, during the four weeks of the course, participants explore the drivers of diseases at the human-animal-environment interface, zoonotic threats and practical strategies for the prevention and control of these threats.

Nearly 400 participants from several fields (animal health, public health, food security and the environment) and from West African countries (Benin, Burkina Faso, Cabo-Verde, Côte d'Ivoire, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, Mali, Niger, Senegal and Togo) but also from Madagascar, Cameroon and Chad registered on the platform of the FAO Virtual Training Centre for West Africa to Take this online course.

This course was supported by a team of facilitators from FAO, WHO AFRO, the Swiss Centre for Scientific Research of Côte d'Ivoire (CSRS-CI), Restore to Save Live (RTSL).

The adoption of the One Health approach, a necessity to anticipate, prevent, detect and control health crises and zoonotic threats in West Africa.

Many challenges such as antimicrobial resistance (AMR), zoonotic diseases such as Ebola, avian influenza, rabies and other vector-borne diseases are a reminder that the health of humans, animals and ecosystems is deeply interconnected. The One Health approach mobilizes sectors, disciplines and communities to work together to promote well-being and address threats to health and ecosystems.

In the West African sub-region, where zoonotic diseases, food security and environmental impacts are major issues, adopting this integrated approach is not an option, but a necessity. Recent health crises, whether animal or human outbreaks, have shown that cooperation across sectors is essential to protect communities and their livelihoods. An example is the recent outbreak of Rift Valley fever in West Africa, which is mobilizing national and sub-regional actors in the animal health, public health and environmental sectors as part of response actions in Senegal, The Gambia and Mauritania.

"This training contributes to the efforts of the quadripartite partnership – FAO, WHO, OMSA and UNEP – to support countries in implementing the One Health approach and collaboration between the human, animal and environmental health sectors in the subregion," said Dr Traoré Tieble of WHO AFRO.

He also recalled that "The operationalization of the "One Health" approach must be based on well-trained and qualified human resources on the one hand, but also well aware of the need for collaboration, communication and close coordination with the other sectors concerned. T

his operationalization also requires " a better understanding of the One Health approach, a more assertive leadership of the One Health platforms and an improvement in intersectoral communication, resource sharing and stronger community mobilization" insisted Prof. Bassirou Bonfoh Directeur du consortium Afrique One Aspire au Centre Suisse de recherche Scientifique de Côte d’Ivoire (CSRS-CI).

FAO Virtual Learning Centers

The FAO Virtual Learning Centers (VLCs) are virtual platforms created by FAO to strengthen and enhance One Health capacity in all FAO regions. Their mission is to provide learners with access to inclusive, challenging and high-quality training using a variety of methodologies. VLCs use a decentralized model that allows FAO regions to develop and deliver courses that consider regional needs and contexts. This online course on "Introduction to One Health" is delivered by the FAO Virtual Learning Center for West Africa, which has been in place within the Animal Health and Production Unit of the FAO Sub-Regional Office for West Africa since the second  semester of 2023.

"This training was of great quality, both in terms of content and form. It allowed me to consolidate my knowledge and acquire concrete tools for my professional practice. I am convinced that such initiatives contribute significantly to the improvement of health security in West Africa," commented one of the participants, satisfied to have taken part in this course.