Eradication of Rinderpest from Africa

Rinderpest eradication in Africa was accomplished following the implementation of three major programmes by the Inter African Bureau for Animal Resources (AU-IBAR): the Joint Project – JP-15 from 1961 to 1976; the Pan African Rinderpest Campaign (PARC) from 1986 to 1999 and the Pan African Programme for the Control of Epizootics (PACE) from 2000 to 2006. The eradication of the last Rinderpest foci from Somali ecosystem was supervised by the Somali Ecosystem Rinderpest Eradication Coordination Unit (SERECU) 2006-2010. The vaccine quality certification was ensured by the Pan African Veterinary Vaccine Centre (PANVAC), established in 1986. The key technical partners involved in eradication process were: FAO, OIE, IAEA and World Reference laboratories for Rinderpest based in UK and France. The international coordination was ensured by the Global Rinderpest Eradication Programme (GREP) established in 1993, under the auspices of the FAO Animal Health Service's on three fronts: in Africa, West and South Asia. The OIE published guidelines for surveillance and freedom accreditation and assumed the responsibility for policing the accreditation of countries. OIE and FAO, as members of steering committees for PARC and PACE, guided strategy decisions. The Technical support provided by the IAEA through the implementation of various Coordinated Research Programmes for the Seromonitoring of Rinderpest with technical assistance from the World Reference Laboratories for Rinderpest, the national and regional technical cooperation projects are documented evidences of the pivotal role the IAEA has played in support of Rinderpest eradication. The building or strengthening of laboratory diagnostic capacities in individual Member States and the establishment of the Rinderpest Laboratory Network proved the ideal vehicle for technology transfer. Annual co-ordination meetings which were linked to training courses in diagnostic techniques, software programs or epidemiological strategies were the major tools in the eradication process. The value of benefits in cattle products due to rinderpest control varied from 581 000 in Benin to 35 433 000 ECU in Ethiopia (Tambi et al 1999). (author)