Veterinary & Biosecurity
Making vaccines available & accessible to women & other marginalized livestock farmers
Women in livestock farming in Uganda have been empowered and trained on vaccines access and proper administration for both animals and poultry. This was during a project dubbed the Livestock Vaccine Innovation Fund (LVIF) undertaken to address the barriers faced by women in livestock vaccine systems in Uganda and generating new evidence on how women can better benefit and participate in the vaccination systems.
The Livestock Vaccine Innovation Fund (LVIF) was funded by Canada International Development Research Centre (IDRC), Global Affairs Canada (GAC) and Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation (BMGF) to support the development of affordable livestock vaccines, targeting diseases that affect women and men who are livestock keepers. The project has been implemented through a set of research action based accomplishments including;
The SHeVax+ research (hearing Their Voices, Action Research to Support Women’s Agency and Empowerment in Livestock Vaccine Distribution, delivery and Use is a partnership between the Cumming School of Veterinary Medicine at Tufts University and the Africa One Health University Network (AFROHUN) together with their implementing partners including Makerere University, University of Nairobi and University of Rwanda. Prof. William Bazeyo is the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of AFROHUN. The project assessed the state of women’s empowerment and gender parity on the vaccine value chain, identified key entry points among women smallholder farmers and entrepreneurs to contribute to and benefit from livestock vaccines thereby improving livestock production and livelihoods. The project was implemented in Sembabule district in Uganda, Machakos County in Kenya, and Nayagatare district in Rwanda.
Advancing Women’s Participation in Livestock Vaccine Value Chain Nepal, Senegal and Uganda research. Implemented by the University of Florida (UF) in collaboration with Makerere University, the project aimed at increasing women’s use of pest des petits ruminants (PPR) vaccines for their small ruminants in Nepal, Senegal, and Uganda as well as Newcastle Disease vaccines for their poultry in Senegal. Recognizing the fact that there are multiple factors that prevent women from vaccinating their animals, most often related to gender and intersectional issues such as class, ethnicity, disability and geographic location, the project introduced the Gender Intersectional Transformative Approach (GITA) with the aim of working with women livestock owners, all levels of animal health workers and trainers with a transformative mind of opening up spaces to allow full participation in the livestock vaccination value chain. In Uganda, the project was implemented in Karamoja Sub region targeting selected sub counties in four districts of Abim, Amudat, Kotido and Moroto.
According to Dr. Evelyn Baraké, the Project Officer- IDRC, the Livestock Innovation Fund was initiated to accelerate the development of new vaccines against neglected livestock diseases, increase the efficacy, marketability and use of existing livestock vaccines and fostering effective partnerships between vaccine researchers and public and private sector actors. The project also focused on animal diseases posing the greatest risk to poor livestock keepers in Sub-Saharan Africa, South and Southeast Asia.
“Our program on Women empowerment and Livestock Vaccines has enhanced the mapping exercise on livestock vaccine value chains. Through this program, we have been able to identify barriers preventing women from accessing vaccines and sought out the effective interventions to increase the demand for vaccines and their use,” she noted.
Dr. Evelyn Baraké also mentioned that IDRC has utilized the programme approach to define and measure changes in gender norms and empowerment hence fostering gender transformative impact.
Majority of rural households in low developing countries are engaged in livestock rearing. This activity is undertaken by both women and men in most cases who are predominantly agro-pastoral smallholders within mixed farming systems. According to Dr. Nargiza Ludgate- the Co-Principal Investigator of the project; Advancing Women’s participation in livestock vaccine value chain, gender and attitudes of animal health service providers can affect their veterinary practice and quality of care. Therefore, developing an understanding of how gender and perceptions can influence veterinary practice is essential to improve the reach and quality of service delivery.
In Uganda, women are often left out of agricultural extension services and technical support. This is because household power imbalances play a key role in animal health services. In the livestock vaccine value chain, women and other marginalized groups such as minority ethnic groups, the elderly and persons living with dis-abilities have less access than men to key inputs such vaccines as well as limited ability to influence decision-making on vaccination and animal health within the households. In addition, women tend to miss out on veterinary services due to the deep- rooted social- cultural biases at household and community levels.
“The unvaccinated animals of women and other marginalized groups are at a higher risk of infection and can spread diseases easily to other livestock. This, consequently undermines community level and global diseases control interventions, such as eradication of peste des petis ruminants by 2030,” noted Agnes Yawe, Head of Grants and Resource Mobilization/ Partnerships, AFROHUN.
Yawe also highlighted the bigger gender gap that has for long existed in the current veterinary curriculum in Uganda when she said, “this curriculum is set by the National Council of Higher Education (NCHE) and must meet the World Health Organization (WHO) for Animal Health standards for veterinarians or para- veterinarians. However, the primary focus of the current curriculum is directed to scientific and technical knowledge or the “hard skills” with little or no space for soft “soft skills” such as gender responsive communication, empathic listening, effective communication and community engagement.”
She further noted the need to integrate gender concepts in refresher courses and workshops for veterinarians and other animal health service providers to enrich their understanding on how best to reach out to women and other marginalized groups.
Prof. Anthony Mugisha, SheVax Country Lead and Co-Principal Investigator in Uganda highlighted the need to increase women’s access to communication tools as a way of enhancing their access to information.
“Women’s limited access to mobile phones and community networks that pass on information also means that they often miss out on the messages related to animal health campaigns. Additionally, those livestock keepers (women and men) who are poor, elderly or living with disabilities or belong to an ethnic group such as the Tepeth who live far away from the community centres on the slopes of Mount Moroto are always left out by veterinary extension agents,” he said.
On Monday 5th March 2023, a multi-stakeholders meeting was convened at Golden Tulip in Kampala, Uganda to; –
- Engage key stakeholders in the livestock vaccine value chain
- Showcase promising approaches for gender responsive and inclusive livestock vaccine value chain
- Disseminate research findings and policy recommendations with key stakeholders
The meeting was officially graced by Hon. Janet Akech Okori-moe, Woman Member of Parliament of Abim district and the Chairperson Agriculture committee of Parliament of Uganda and attended by livestock farmers, policy Makers, research and scientists and media.
Speaking at the meeting, Hon. Janet Akech Okori-Moe said that small ruminants such as goats, sheep and poultry form a bigger part of livelihood enterprise and provide key benefits to most smallholder farmers especially women in the developing countries including Uganda. She also noted that whereas this is so, the animal value chain right from production up to the end point of selling the product quite often leaves out women and other vulnerable groups.
“It is estimated globally that approximately 262 million people at the worst poor keep livestock for food security and income generation and women represent two thirds of this total population. Women being smallholder farmers, face serious challenges and therefore the need to support them, build their confidence in a patriarchal society and allow their participation in matters that affect them through equipping them with information and mindset change training sessions,” she noted.
“Available record also shows that women have poor access to vaccines for the few livestock they manage. They are believed to be good animal care takers compared to their male counter parts hence strategies are needed to ensure that women’s ability to participate and benefit from the vaccine value chains is realized,” she added.
With reference to the existing village health teams, Hon. Janet Akech Okori-Moe called for the consideration for formation of the village animal health teams to attend to challenges affecting livestock farmers in Uganda. She as well urged policymakers to enhance their actions and discussions that support the need to address animal health challenges in Uganda.
Highlighting government support towards livestock farming in Uganda, Hon. Akech Okori-Moe informed participants of the recently launched government Scientific Vaccine Trials that are currently being tested in five centres in Uganda including two prison farms. She acknowledged the tremendous work done by experts from Makerere University, School of Veterinary Medicine at Tufts University, the University of Florida (UF), and the Africa One Health University Network (AFROHUN) through research to empower more women in livestock farming.
In the same spirit, the Honourable Member of Parliament thanked Canada International Development Research Centre (IDRC), Global Affairs Canada (GAC) and Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation (BMGF) for supporting programmmes tailored at addressing dilemmas surrounding animal health in Uganda.
“Thank you for building confidence in women. With your support, their voices are being heard, their actions are being felt, their participation is being noticed in animal health promotion and I pray that this research is replicated with resources and time allowing to other equally deserving areas,” she said.
The project success stories
According to Dr. Hellen Amuguni, the Principal Investigator of Shevax project, Dr. Hellen Amuguni, the project was able to;-
- Train 24 Animal Health Service Providers and well quipped to serve 140,000 households.
- Over 1500 people have received animal health training.
- 1,200 Vaxxer calendars have been disseminated.
She acknowledged the projects efforts to equip farmers with solar powered fridges, vaccine kits and trainings on how and when to access and administer the vaccines to animals and poultry.
Three policy briefs on making vaccines available and accessible to women and marginalized livestock farmers; Gender-responsive and inclusive veterinary extension for health animals, reduced poverty and empowered women; and Gender and social inclusion training for veterinary animal health services providers were developed and shared to key stakeholders.
The project also facilitated the development of IEC materials in form of posters and comic books written and translated in the local languages of the communities that were engaged during the project implementation process.
Women were also trained in basic skills in photography as a way of expressing themselves, tell their stories and enhancing their voices on livestock farming. In seeking to transform the veterinary extension services to become more gender aware, responsive and inclusive, the team recommended the following:
- Putting gender-inclusive livestock policies into practice through actual procedures or processes to improve vaccination programs
- Fostering collaborations between animal health technical providers and community development service providers to reach stakeholders who are left behind
- Gender responsiveness of service provision should be an integral part of animal health technical trainings
- Including women along the animal and poultry Vaccine Value Chain (VVC) improves the efficacy and efficiency of vaccination programs by reaching underserved smallholders
- Government and private Animal Health Service Providers (AHSPs) need to recognize that socio-cultural issues at household and community level prevent women and other marginalized small holders from using and engaging as providers of livestock vaccine services
- Public- private collaboration within the livestock vaccine value chain needs committed leadership from government agencies and relevant departments
- Investing in integrating gender knowledge and communication skills into training and curriculum for veterinarians and animal service providers
- Encouraging women and marginalized groups to become animal health service providers
- Ensuring that Community Animal Health Workers (CAHWs) trainings follow a competence- based learning framework, enriched with gender and soft skills modules and offered as refresher courses
- Strengthening women, the poor, elderly and persons living with disabilities livestock keepers’ access to critical animal health welfare services, such as veterinary care, drugs and information and technology
- Investing in gender transformative approaches in veterinary extension training
- Sensitizing community leaders, CAHWs and other key community stakeholders
Veterinary & Biosecurity
PREPARE4VBD Project Holds Final Workshop in Uganda; A Landmark in Vector-Borne Disease Preparedness
By Joseph Odoi
The final dissemination workshop of the EU-funded project: A Cross-Disciplinary Alliance to Identify, PREdict, and PrePARe for Emerging Vector-Borne Diseases (PREPARE4VBDs) was successfully held from May 5th to 8th, 2025 at Best Western Premier Garden Hotel, Entebbe, Uganda, marking the culmination of a five-year, cross-continental research effort addressing vector-borne diseases in the era of climate change and globalization.
The hybrid event attracted over 80 participants, including researchers, policymakers, health practitioners, veterinarians, early-career scientists, and students from Africa and Europe. The workshop featured two key sessions with; one at Best Western Premier Garden Hotel, Entebbe, and another at the Centre for Biosecurity, College of Veterinary Medicine, Animal Resources and Biosecurity (CoVAB), Makerere University.
In his opening remarks, Professor Lawrence Mugisha (Uganda’s Co-Principal Investigator from CoVAB, Makerere University), officially welcomed all stakeholders and highlighted that the purpose of the workshop was to share research findings and engage stakeholders as the project wraps up. The project commenced in September 2021 and will end in August 2025.
Prof. Mugisha noted that the overall aim of PREPARE4VBD is to strengthen preparedness in Africa and Europe for emerging zoonotic vector-borne diseases, especially in an era of climate change and increasing global interconnectedness by (a) Creating a broad, and conceptual knowledge about vector-borne disease emergence and responses to climate change that reaches beyond specific diseases, vector species, borders or scientific disciplines (b)Improving prediction and preparedness in Africa and Europe for zoonotic vector-borne diseases transmitted by mosquitoes, ticks and freshwater snails to livestock and humans under climate change and globalization.
In a project overview, the PREPARE4VBD Principal Investigator, Professor Anna-Sofie Stensgaard from the Department of Veterinary and Animal Sciences at the University of Copenhagen, noted that vector-borne diseases are on the move, accounting for 17% of all infectious diseases and causing 700,000 deaths across the globe each year. She emphasized that zoonotics can’t be isolated as a human or animal health issue.
“The problem is growing and they are on the move,” she said, pointing to increased outbreaks of Rift Valley Fever, Dengue, West Nile, Chikungunya, Fasciolosis, and Schistosomiasis.
Because of this, she noted that the project thought of the need for cross-cutting and in-depth knowledge to improve surveillance and build capacity for early detection, as vector-borne diseases respect no borders. This, she explained, justified the formation of a multidisciplinary team consisting of 10 complementary partner institutions in Europe and Africa.
In terms of approach, she noted that the project used a proactive approach that focuses on addressing VBDs at a lower level, rather than the usual reactive approach that tackles diseases after they present themselves in large numbers.
More specifically, Professor Anna-Sofie noted that PREPARE4VBD focused on four thematic areas aimed at
A) Building knowledge through baseline data collection of neglected tick-, mosquito-, and snail-borne VBDs of importance for animal and human health in endemic African countries.
B) Assessing their capacity to adapt and spread to new areas using a holo-genomics approach and state-of-the-art climate change impact modelling.
C) Developing novel, sensitive diagnostic tools and model-based surveillance for rapid VBD discovery and early warning.
D) Strengthening the capacity for detection and surveillance of the targeted VBDs through training, effective communication, and dissemination of freely available data.
As part of project activities, Professor Anna-Sofie shared that the project conducted
- Training of 4 MSc students and 11 PhD fellows, as well as early-career researcher summer schools in Uganda and Kenya.
- Engaging fellows in the poster sessions and technical workshops, such as molecular diagnostics and VBD modeling.
- Promotion of transdisciplinary collaboration and knowledge exchange among partners across Africa and Europe.
In terms of key project achievements, she noted the project was able to achieve the following
- The development of a new AI-assisted Mini-FLOTAC microscope model.
- Creation of a model for Rift Valley Fever transmission and analysis of climate change impacts on snail-borne diseases.
- Discovery of an Ixodes tick species in Kenya, which was previously only known in Europe.
- Large-scale vector-snail warming experiments conducted across different climates, from South Africa to Denmark.
- Creation of a Global Vector Database (GVD) for centralized vector data collection.
- Development of non-invasive diagnostic tools, including PCR tools for pathogen detection in livestock blood/tick fluids, environmental DNA methods for liver fluke detection, and establishment of standard operating procedures (SOPs) and training videos, all publicly accessible online.
Research Highlights in Uganda
In terms of consortium research highlights from the VBD project in Uganda, Adriko Moses from the Ministry of Health shared a multi-stakeholder approach to mitigate risks of liver fluke infections, a zoonotic disease affecting humans and animals.
Six districts near lake basins were studied: Hoima, Buliisa, Apac, Lira, Jinja, and Mayuge. The study involved 300 human samples, with 2 positive cases identified. Findings also highlighted damaged livers in slaughtered animals.
To address this trend in Uganda, the following policy recommendations were made from the study
Policy Recommendations for Control and Prevention of Liver Fluke Disease in Uganda
- Strengthen meat inspection policy in Uganda, including livestock testing before slaughter and enhanced meat testing protocols.
- Promote vegetable hygiene to control zoonotic fascioliasis—a parasitic infection transmitted through contaminated food.
- Scale up veterinary interventions in livestock through collaboration between farmers and veterinary services.
- Establish surveillance systems to monitor infections among livestock.
- Increase community engagement to improve health education and foster community-led health initiatives.
Remarks from Government and Academia
Dr. Peter Wanyama, representing the Commissioner for Ministry of Agriculture, Animal Industry and Fisheries (MAAIF), commended the consortium for selecting Uganda and recognized the threat of VBDs to both animal and human health, as well as national development. He noted the challenge of tick resistance, and that MAAIF is constructing 69 diagnostic laboratories to address emerging vector-borne threats. He emphasized the need for local knowledge, effective communication, and knowledge translation.
Dr. Allan Muruta, Guest of Honour and Commissioner for Animal Health Services at the Ministry of Health, welcomed the multidisciplinary team to Uganda on behalf of the Minister of State for Primary Health Care.
He thanked the consortium for a well-done multidisciplinary effort addressing the growing challenge of vector-borne diseases in Africa. As a technical officer in surveillance, Dr. Muruta appreciated the project’s clear planning and timely execution.
“Africa is endemic to zoonotic diseases but allow me to share what the Ministry of Health has done. Our Integrated Surveillance Department has set up coordinated responses to several public health issues,” he shared.
He welcomed the findings and policy briefs developed through the research, noting they are relevant, science-based, and practical. He said the Ministry of Health has clear structures for handling policy issues and committed to engaging further to ensure policy uptake and action.
“All the policy briefs are feasible, new, and based on up-to-date science. The Ministry will follow through to see these policies implemented.”
He further noted that Uganda already has a functional One Health platform bringing together directors from health, water, and wildlife sectors. However, he emphasized the need to strengthen data sharing across the sub-national level. The Ministry, he said, is engaging with different sectors to make this happen.
Dr. Muruta reaffirmed the Ministry of Health’s openness to more collaboration in tackling zoonotic diseases and strengthening the One Health approach.
Prof. Frank Mwine, Principal of CoVAB, Makerere University, welcomed participants and applauded collaborative efforts in addressing vector-borne diseases.
In his remarks at Makerere University, Prof. Frank Mwine welcomed the diverse participants and thanked Prof. Lawrence Mugisha for his proven coordination and mobilization around One Health. He acknowledged the growing threats posed by climate change and emphasized the interconnectedness of ecosystems citing how birds migrate from Europe to Africa—as a reason for cross-border collaboration.
He commended the PREPARE4VBD project team for their unique research and innovations aimed at addressing vector-borne diseases and appreciated the European Union’s Horizon 2020 research and innovation programme for supporting such a critical initiative.
Looking ahead, Prof. Mwine stressed the importance of training the next generation to strengthen preparedness and response efforts in the future.
In a cross-country experience-sharing session involving Côte d’Ivoire, Uganda, and South Africa, coordinated by Prof. Moses J. Chimbari (South Africa), participants agreed on the urgent need to integrate One Health into university curricula and bring together diverse disciplines to address vector-borne diseases caused by climate change and other complex factors.
In this engagement, there were a number of panel discussions revolving around translating policy recommendations into practical actions for long-term impact. Prof Lawrence Mugisha at this engagement announced that another dissemination on VBDs project outcomes will be held specifically for Students who were doing exams at the time of the Project dissemination
Workshop Highlights
Key research outcomes were presented, including the development of a Global Vector Database (GVD), AI-assisted diagnostic tools, and predictive climate-disease models.
The Entebbe session hosted high-level stakeholders, including representatives from the Ministries of Health and Agriculture, NGOs, and international research bodies. Discussions emphasized the importance of translating research into policy and action.
For outreach and dissemination, thirteen policy briefs were shared, alongside posters, infopacks, risk maps, peer-reviewed publications, newsletters, and fellow-driven blog posts all aimed at sustaining knowledge exchange beyond the project lifespan.
Notable to mention was the development of a knowledge co-production model under the project, titled “Knowledge Co-Construction in Stakeholder Engagement Workshops in Health Research” by Kathrin Heitz Tokpa, Lawrence Mugisha, Moses Chimbari, and Bassirou Bonfoh.
The project has notably enhanced Africa Europe scientific cooperation and empowered local institutions with tools and training to detect, track, and control emerging diseases.
About the Project
PREPARE4VBD is a multi-disciplinary consortium that brings together 10 university and ministerial partners from 5 African and 3 European countries, united to address a future with increasingly changing global patterns of zoonotic vector-borne diseases through a holistic, pro-active approach that reaches beyond specific diseases, vector species, borders or scientific disciplines.
Project partners included; Makerere University, Sokoine University of Agriculture, University of KwaZulu-Natal, University of Naples Federico II, Swiss TPH, University of Bern, ICIPE, Uganda’s Vector Control Division, Centre Suisse de Recherches Scientifiques, and Tanzania’s NIMR.
The project is part of Horizon 2020’s research and innovation actions (Grant agreement No. 101000365: https://cordis.europa.eu/project/id/101000365) and is coordinated by the University of Copenhagen’s GLOBE Institute and Department of Veterinary and Animal Sciences.
To read more about the project, visit the PREPARE4VBD website (www.prepare4vbd.eu), which offers key resources on vector-borne disease preparedness, including open-access tools, training materials, and research outputs to support continuous capacity building.
Veterinary & Biosecurity
Alumni of Molecular Biology Honor Prof. George William Lubega for Outstanding Contributions
Veterinary & Biosecurity
Uganda Advances Bacteriophage Research in Fight against Antimicrobial Resistance
Makerere University convened a symposium to explore bacteriophage applications in combating antimicrobial resistance (AMR) and addressing health, agricultural, and environmental challenges. Organized by The Alliance for Phage Research and Development Uganda Ltd (PhageTeam Uganda), the event brought together researchers from Makerere University, Kyambogo University, Kampala International University, and Ian Clarke International University, and other players, highlighting a collaborative approach to tackling global and local issues.
Day two of the symposium saw researchers and policy makers together with partners from the UK and USA hold a discourse on the best way forward in the promotion of bacteriophage research and production in the country to support efforts against anti-microbial resistance.
Speaking at the event held at Hilton Garden Inn, Dr. Jesca Nakavuma, the lead phage researcher from the College of Veterinary Medicine, Animal Resources and Biosecurity (CoVAB), Makerere University, stressed the urgent need for alternative antimicrobial agents due to the rise in drug resistance and limited discovery of new antibiotics. Bacteriophages, natural viruses that target bacteria, she said, were identified as a promising solution to revolutionize disease control, treatment, and food security. She said research in this area was key because humankind was at risk of the impending calamity of life-threatening treatment failure.
Prof. Robert Wamala, Makerere University‘s Director for Research, Innovations, and Partnerships, who spoke on behalf of the Vice Chancellor, Prof. Barnabas Nawangwe, underscored the importance of building local capacity in phage research. He noted that such efforts could enhance Uganda’s resilience against AMR and yield homegrown solutions for human, animal, and crop health.
As the world grapples with the growing threat of antimicrobial resistance (AMR), bacteriophage research offers a promising alternative. Phages, which are natural enemies of bacteria, have the potential to revolutionize the approach to treatment, disease control, and food security, he noted. He said building local expertise in phage application can enhance Uganda’s resilience against AMR and produce sustainable homegrown solutions to health and environmental challenges.
Prof. Robert Wamala said Makerere University was committed to supporting cutting-edge research and innovation that addresses national and global challenges in line with the university’s role in knowledge generation, technology advancement, and policy influence. The importance of regulatory institutions, he said, cannot be overemphasized in this endeavor, since they enforce compliance, uphold ethical standards, and foster an enabling environment for impactful research and innovation. He said the engagement presented an opportunity to strengthen collaboration between researchers, institutions, and regulatory bodies to ensure that the outcomes are scientifically sound and are aligned to the national development priorities and global best practices.
Dr. Claire M. Mugasa, the Dean of the School of Biosecurity, Biotechnical and Laboratory Sciences (SBLS), CoVAB reiterated the fact that antimicrobial resistance was on the rise in Uganda and Africa, more than elsewhere in the world. She said it was time now that efforts be intensified in looking for sustainable options to curb the dangerous trends. She said this cuts across the human and the animals. She said it was an opportune time for players to come together to find ways of getting the required alternative. She said by coming together, the different ideas developed individually would in a concerted effort, pulling resources together for a way forward.
During the discourse, several subjects were addressed, including an introduction to antimicrobial resistance, phage biology, phage application, and lessons learnt from the establishment of a phage research centre in the UK, which was presented by Prof. Martha Clokie from the University of Leicester. This initiative reflects a commitment to fostering innovation, collaboration, and regulatory compliance, positioning Uganda as a leader in sustainable solutions for global challenges.
The symposium was sponsored by Global AMR Innovation Fund (GAMRIF), through a grant to the UK Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) in partnership with Phages for Global Health.
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