Improving animal disease surveillance in support of trade (STSD) in IGAD member states was formulated to address challenges posed by the trade-sensitive animal diseases (TSDs) taking into consideration the fact that these diseases are a shared concern requiring coordinated and integrated control approaches. The African Union Inter African Bureau for Animal Resources (AU-IBAR) in partnership with Inter Governmental Authority on Development (IGAD) and with funding from the European Union (EU), formulated this important regional project:

Improving Animal Disease Surveillance in Support of Trade in IGAD Member States or Surveillance for the Trade-Sensitive Diseases Project (STSD), which is a regional component of the Supporting the Horn of Africa’s Resilience (SHARE) Project. A 3-year project that aims to strengthen technical and institutional capacities of the IGAD member states (MS) to protect livestock assets, enhance the resilience of the livestock-based livelihoods and promote livestock trade. It also aims to reduce the impacts of TADs and zoonoses on trade through improved disease surveillance, animal identification and traceability as well as health certification systems in all eight (8) MS of the IGAD region. STSD equally aims to harmonize regional sanitary measures, while specifically supporting the development of regional traceability and certification schemes, which will help reduce the impact of the specified trade‐significant transboundary animal diseases (TADs) by developing an umbrella programme, jointly coordinated at the AU-IBAR/IGAD levels and subscribed to by all the participating countries, to provide a regional uniformity.

Generally, the project goal is to improve the contribution of livestock to food security and safety, economic growth and poverty reduction in the IGAD region with a specific objective to increase exports of live animal and livestock products; and consequently contribute to the reduction of poverty, enhance regional economic growth and integration through improved access, of live animals and animal products, to the regional and international markets. Other important project’s purpose, however, is to coordinate and harmonize animal identification, traceability and health certification and regulations in the Greater Horn of Africa region. The project intends to enable better coordinated responses against many recurrent TADs, especially PPR through ensuring early detection capabilities and development of PPR regional control strategy and coordination mechanism.

Through STSD, AU-IBAR will strengthen IGAD capacity to effectively play its role in the coordination and harmonization of actions to expedite economic growth and integration process as per the Abuja Treaty.

The two results for the project are:

1. Animal Identification, Traceability and Health Certification Systems Improved;
2. Surveillance and Disease Control strategies Improved.

Some achievements

• Developed and validated with MS the regional Guidelines for Animal Identification, Traceability (LITs) and Animal health Health Certification Systems. The guidelines will be soon published and distributed for utilization. ICPALD in collaboration with AUIBAR will also support two MSs to pilot LITs that will provide capacity and lesson for possible up-scaling in the region. A regional LITS and AHC forum has also been established to provide guidance and support MS to exchange of lessons in the area.
• Developed and validated with MS the regional framework for progressive control and eradication of PPR. A regional coordination committee has also been established to provide guidance and support for MS to update or develop their national strategies and facilitate implementation
• Ongoing activities to enhance surveillance and disease reporting capacity of member states are being conducted