Somali sheep and goats

Evaluation of livestock emergencies: Vaccination and disease surveillance

This project will assess the effect, impact and cost-effectiveness of livestock vaccination performed during humanitarian crises in Africa. The project will also evaluate the effectiveness, efficiency and sustainability of participatory disease surveillance in Mongolia.

Overview

Many of the communities affected by humanitarian crises in Africa are heavily dependent upon livestock for livelihoods and nutrition, and the consequences of livestock losses on these communities are devastating.

As these crises often result in the loss or increased vulnerability of livestock, humanitarian interventions frequently aim to protect these animals during times of risk such as drought.

Livestock vaccination is central to this, as animals become more susceptible to infections during these times due to their weakened state from lack of food and water.

However, little has been done to assess the impact or cost-effectiveness of these vaccination programs, despite their wide implementation. Therefore, this project will generate evidence in this area through a desk review and quantitative evaluation studies.

The project will also evaluate participatory disease surveillance in Mongolia to support early detection and control of transboundary animal diseases.

Objectives

  1. To evaluate livestock emergency vaccination programs in terms of effectiveness, impact and cost-effectiveness.
  2. To evaluate participatory disease surveillance interventions in Mongolia in terms of relevance, effectiveness, efficiency, impact and sustainability.

Staff

Bernard Bett

Bernard Bett

Senior scientist, Animal and human health

Shauna Richards

Shauna Richards

Post-Doctoral Fellow

Theo Knight-Jones

Theo Knight-Jones

Principal Scientist - Team Leader Herd Health