One Health Centre in Africa

The goal of the One Health Research, Education and Outreach Centre in Africa is to improve the health of humans, animals and ecosystems through capacity building, strengthening of local, regional and global networks and provision of evidence-based policy advice on One Health in sub-Saharan Africa. The centre has four thematic areas: control of neglected tropical zoonotic diseases, emerging infectious diseases, food safety and informal markets, and prevention and control of antimicrobial resistance.
 
  • Research as the basis for science and academia, policy advice, recommendations for interventions including donor investments
  • Capacity development to strengthen national competencies in One Health including education and training programs, communication interventions for behaviour change
  • Development of strategies and action plans to control zoonotic diseases and antimicrobial resistance
  • Support of public campaigns to control and/or eradicate zoonotic and foodborne diseases and promote rational use of drugs.

Thematic focus
1. Control of neglected tropical zoonotic diseases

Prioritization of diseases according to their health and economic burden; consideration of tuberculosis, brucellosis, rabies, Rift Valley fever among other zoonoses; development of information and communication technologies

2. Emerging infectious diseases

COVID-19 diagnostics and control; pandemic prevention

3. Food safety and informal markets

Risk assessment and identification of critical control points; improved occupational health and hygiene during food processing in informal markets; hygiene and waste management; risk communication

4. Prevention and control of antimicrobial resistance

Rational/prudent use of antimicrobials; antimicrobial resistance at the human-animal-environment interface; the role of livestock production in antimicrobial resistance; reduced and targeted use of drugs; improved data availability

These thematic areas build on and complement past and existing BMZ/GIZ-funded activities such as the Safe Food, Fair Food project in Africa and Boosting Uganda’s Investments in Livestock Development. The thematic area of antimicrobial resistance is funded by other investment partners through the CGIAR Antimicrobial Resistance Hub and works closely with the One Health Centre.
 

An advisory committee of 10 representatives from institutions working on One Health will provide the centre with advice and guidance, with special attention to the specific needs of the African context.

Cross-cutting themes and interdisciplinarity

All themes include socio-economic and ecological (including climate change) aspects and research questions. Various groups (e.g. agro-pastoralists, conservationists, livestock farmers, processors, consumers and policymakers) are included.
Capacity development involves multidisciplinary approaches. ILRI and partners support communication, data management and laboratory bench work.
 

Project partners and stakeholders

The One Health Centre will build networks and partnerships with institutions in Africa, Europe and beyond.
 

Prospective partners

  • African Science Partnership for Intervention Research Excellence
  • Federal Research Institute for Animal Health (Friedrich-Loeffler-Institut), Germany
  • Federal Institute for Risk Assessment, Germany
  • Freie Universität Berlin, Germany
  • FoodBerlin
  • Vétérinaires Sans Frontières, Germany 
  • Other CGIAR centres (the International Institute of Tropical Agriculture in the context of aflatoxins)
Collaboration with the African Union-Interafrican Bureau for Animal Resources, the Inter-Governmental Authority on Development as well as multilateral organizations, especially the World Organisation for Animal Health, the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations and the World Health Organization, will be further strengthened.

Related News

AgHealth blog

One Health in action: Research by ILRI and partners improves the health of people, animals and the environment

The current coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic has brought into sharp focus the interconnectedness of people, animals and the environment and how this can contribute to the spread of disease. One Health is a concept that recognizes that the health and well-being of people is intricately linked...

ILRI News

New One Health centre in Africa announces advisory committee members

A young Samburu herder cradles a kid 5 kms to the west of Oldonyiro town in Isiolo County, Kenya (photo credit: ILRI Livestock CRP/ Kabir Dhanji). The One Health Research, Education and Outreach Centre in Africa (OHRECA) , which is led by the International Livestock Research Institute (ILRI) , has...

ILRI News

Focus on environmental health: The role of rangelands in an integrated One Health approach

As the we commemorate the World Environment Day, 5 -June-2020, the criticality of the One Health approach, integrating human, animal and environmental health has continued to come to the fore. Yet, more attention needs to be given to the environmental health component including of the resource base...

ILRI News
ILRI News

New One Health Centre in Africa joins global efforts to prevent future pandemics

Annett Günther, the German ambassador to Kenya, and Jimmy Smith, ILRI’s director general, at the inauguration of the One Health Centre in Africa (photo credit: ILRI/Paul Karaimu). This post was developed by Ekta Patel and Geoffrey Njenga, and edited by Paul Karaimu . This year the global One Health...

AgHealth blog

Experts call for global One Health platform to consolidate evidence on actions to tackle antimicrobial resistance

The World Health Organization has declared that antimicrobial resistance is one of the top 10 global public health threats facing humanity. It requires urgent multisectoral action in order to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals. Improving evidence for action is crucial to tackle this global...

ILRI News

Towards eradicating rabies in Kenya: One Health Centre in Africa supports vaccination campaign in Machakos

The International Livestock Research Institute led One Health Centre in Africa (OHRECA) in partnership with Machakos County government, the Zoonotic Disease Unit (ZDU) and Vétérinaires Sans Frontières-Germany (VSF-G) have launched a rabies vaccination campaign in Machakos County as part of an...

Related Publications

Advisory committee

Team

One Health Directory for Sub-Saharan Africa

For the One Health Research, Education and Outreach Centre in Africa, ILRI commissioned a review to map existing One Health initiatives in Sub-Saharan African countries spatio-temporally while creating a link to a database on One Health in Africa and stimulating critical One Health thinking in Africa. In this work, we comprehensively evaluated One Health initiatives available in the region as defined by the United Nations. This geographical area covers includes 46 of the 54 African countries.

Browse the directory