BUILD

Boosting Uganda’s investment in livestock development

This project aims to support existing livestock health initiatives by helping to scale solutions through a collaborative effort in research, extension and partnerships.

In Uganda, around 70% of all households keep at least one kind of livestock (including poultry). Livestock production is primarily a family business, but only a fraction of the food produced is used for home consumption. Most of it is sold at local markets, which are mainly informal markets. Pathogenic diseases are one of the constraints that limit livestock production, often resulting in death of animals and loss of income and livelihoods for livestock keepers. Zoonotic diseases such as brucellosis and Rift Valley fever threaten the health of producers, processors and consumers. Improved animal health, therefore, directly contributes towards improved livelihoods and human health through better diets and fewer zoonotic diseases.

Knowledge and awareness about animal diseases, their risks and intervention options are limited in Uganda. For many of the animal health problems, there are effective solutions at hand, for example, vaccines. However, lack of infrastructure and institutions in low- and middle-income countries does not allow last-mile delivery of solutions or implementation of disease control. Lack of awareness on the benefits of vaccines results in unwillingness to purchase them. This problem is compounded by lack of trained personnel to deliver vaccines. There is little investment in capacity building and professional development of processors, which leads to gaps in research and surveillance of transboundary and zoonotic diseases. This project thus aims to support existing structures by helping to scale solutions through a collaborative effort in research, extension and partnerships.

The project has four main components:

  1. Support for ongoing campaigns to eradicate the transboundary disease, peste des petits ruminants
  2. Control of zoonotic diseases
  3. Control of antimicrobial resistance
  4. Improved veterinary public health at the point of slaughter

 

Herd Health Approach Livestock CRP

Staff

Arshnee Moodley

Arshnee Moodley

Team leader, Antimicrobial resistance

Ben Lukuyu

Ben Lukuyu

Senior Scientist, Animal Nutrition

Bernard Bett

Bernard Bett

Senior scientist, Animal and human health

Dieter Schillinger

Dieter Schillinger

ILRI Emeritus Fellow

Ekta Patel

Ekta Patel

Scientist & One Health Communications Coordinator

Elizabeth Cook

Elizabeth Cook

Scientist - Epidemiology

Emily Ouma

Emily Ouma

Senior Scientist, Agricultural Economist

Kristina Roesel

Kristina Roesel

Senior scientist, Animal and human health

Samuel O. Oyola

Samuel O. Oyola

Senior Scientist: Molecular Biologist and Head of Genomics

ALEX MABIRIZI

ALEX MABIRIZI

GRADUATE FELLOW

Dan Tumusiime

Dan Tumusiime

PhD Fellow, BUILDUganda

Denis Rwabiita Mugizi

Denis Rwabiita Mugizi

Post-doctoral fellow (Epidemiologist)

DICKSON NDOBOLI

DICKSON NDOBOLI

PhD FELLOW

Dreck Ayebare

Dreck Ayebare

Research assistant

Innocent Obilil

Innocent Obilil

Data Systems Management Specialist

IRENE MBATIDDE

IRENE MBATIDDE

PhD Fellow

James Bugeza

James Bugeza

PhD Fellow, Build Uganda Program

Jane Namatovu

Jane Namatovu

Gender support specialist

John Juma

John Juma

Graduate Fellow

Joseph Nkamwesiga

Joseph Nkamwesiga

PhD Fellow

Lordrick Alinaitwe

Lordrick Alinaitwe

PhD Research Fellow

Marsy Asindu

Marsy Asindu

PhD fellow, Animal and human health

Pamela Wairagala

Pamela Wairagala

Communications and Knowledge Management Senior Officer

Patrick P'Odyek Abila

Patrick P'Odyek Abila

Graduate Fellow Rift Valley Fever Entomology

Peter Lule Mulindwa

Peter Lule Mulindwa

PHD Fellow