PPR Episystem Workshop for Eastern Africa back-to-back with PPR Cross-border harmonisation of activities in the Great Lakes Region

To support countries in applying this approach, PPR episystem guidelines have been developed. Two international training workshops have already taken place—in Yaoundé, Cameroon (2024), and in Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia (2025)—building capacity in episystem identification and strategic resource allocation.

Forthcoming Events

Building on this momentum, two key meetings are scheduled to take place back-to-back in the Eastern Africa region, responding to interest expressed by Great Lakes countries during the PPR roadmap meeting held in Sebeta, Addis Ababa, in September 2025. These events will focus on strengthening cross-border collaboration and advancing the episystem approach to accelerate PPR control and eradication.

• Eastern Africa Episystem Workshop
  This workshop will assist countries in gathering and analysing context-specific data essential for episystem assessments. Key data types include trade routes and markets, seasonal grazing areas, spatial distribution of small ruminant populations and animal health services, historical PPR outbreak sites, and laboratory sequencing data to confirm the interconnectedness of virus clades. The workshop aims to translate these analyses into actionable national surveillance plans and targeted vaccination strategies, while improving regional reporting on virus circulation.

• PPR Cross-border Harmonisation Meeting – Great Lakes Region
  Held back-to-back with the episystem workshop, this meeting responds directly to the interest expressed by Great Lakes countries in advancing cross-border collaboration. Given the region’s reliance on transboundary livestock production and trade, harmonising control activities is critical to overcoming the challenges of managing highly contagious diseases across national borders. The meeting will focus on aligning strategies, coordinating interventions, and strengthening joint approaches to PPR control.

Together, these events underscore a continued commitment to the PPR GCES and the operationalisation of the episystem approach. By equipping countries with the tools to understand disease dynamics at their source and to coordinate across borders, these gatherings will play a vital role in sustaining progress toward the 2030 eradication goal.

These events are by invitation only, for selected natuonal and regional participants, no publicly available links will be shared here.

For more information, please contact Dr Viola Chemis at [email protected].