Bernard Bett

Bernard Bett

Senior scientist, Animal and human health

Bernard Bett, a veterinarian with a postgraduate training on epidemiology, co-leads research on emerging infectious diseases at the International Livestock Research Institute (ILRI). His competencies include infectious disease modeling, participatory epidemiology, design and implementation of analytical studies and disease surveillance. His current research focusses on the impacts of climate, land use and biodiversity changes on the occurrence and transmission of infectious diseases, especially those that are transmissible between animals and people. He works with various actors in public and private sectors in the development of decision support tools for managing disease risks based on information generated from research.

My Projects

Sep 2019Aug 2022

Co-infection with Rift Valley fever virus, Brucella spp. and Coxiella burnetii in humans and animals in Kenya: Disease burden and ecological factors

Rift Valley fever, brucellosis and Q fever cause serious illnesses in humans and are associated with extensive socio-economic losses in livestock. These diseases are prevalent in pastoral areas of Kenya and are among the country’s top 10 priority zoonoses. In people, the diseases cause intermittent...

Jun 2017May 2020

Identifying anthrax hotspots and associated ecological factors in Kenya

In Kenya and sub-Saharan Africa, outbreaks of anthrax occur in certain ecological regions, primarily triggered by weather extremes. Outbreaks of this neglected disease result in significant morbidity and mortality in humans, livestock and wildlife. The overall goal of this project is to identify...

Jun 2015May 2019

Linking biodiversity, ecosystem functions and services in the Serengeti-Mara region, East Africa: Drivers of change, causalities and sustainable management strategies (AfricanBioServices)

Climate change represents a major threat to global biodiversity and in the Serengeti-Mara ecosystem, it is apparent as increased variability and irregularity of rainfall. Africa harbours the fastest growing human population in the world and the pressure on natural resources in the Serengeti-Mara...

Feb 2017Jan 2019

Developing optimal vaccination strategies for Rift Valley fever in East Africa

Rift Valley fever is a mosquito-borne viral zoonotic disease that affects sheep, goats, cattle and camels causing devastating losses, especially among pastoral communities that rely on livestock for their livelihoods. The disease occurs in explosive outbreaks following periods of above-normal and...

Feb 2012Jul 2015

Dynamic drivers of disease in Africa

Dynamic Drivers of Disease in Africa is an Ecosystem Services for Poverty Alleviation-funded research program designed to deliver much-needed, cutting-edge science on the relationships between ecosystems, zoonoses, health and wellbeing, with the objective of helping people move out of poverty and...

Jan 2011Dec 2014

Health, environmental change and adaptive capacity; mapping, examining and anticipating future risks of water-related vector-borne diseases in eastern Africa (HEALTHY FUTURES)

Outbreaks of water-related, vector-borne diseases have complex relationships with environmental conditions. As environmental conditions change, such as through climate and land use changes, then the incidence of disease outbreaks is likely to change. Although all those living in areas where...

Mar 2013May 2014

Developing a livestock traceability system for domestic and export markets in pastoral areas of eastern Africa

Livestock contribute immensely to socio-economic development in the Intergovernmental Authority on Development (IGAD) region. There are about 68 million livestock units in the region with Ethiopia, Sudan and South Sudan. Most of this region is arid or semi-arid, thus pastoral or agro-pastoral...

Oct 2009Sep 2011

Enhancing animal health systems in Africa

Weaknesses in veterinary surveillance systems in Africa have been highlighted during recent outbreaks of infectious diseases such as Rift Valley fever and Highly Pathogenic Avian Influenza. Conventional passive surveillance has proven largely ineffective due to poor capacity and compliance, and...

My blog posts

ILRI News

08 Apr 2020

Africa’s growing risk of diseases that spread from animals to people

The outbreak of COVID-19 is a rude awakening to many who believed the era of infectious disease was over. In this post, Bernard Bett, Delia Randolph and John McDermott argue that not only are pandemics not over, they may be increasing in frequency; and while most originated in Asia in the past,...