Zoonotic diseases of livestock origin continue to receive limited attention in terms of routine surveillance, and diagnostics at the point of care in Uganda and other low and middle-income countries. Anthrax is one such zoonotic disease that results in the sudden death of livestock and exposure of humans through contact with dead animals and their body fluids. Recently, Uganda has registered several outbreaks in different parts of the country, with an alarming number of human infections. Our study focused on assessing the preparedness of local government districts in responding to reported suspected anthrax outbreaks. Our results reveal that districts are ill-prepared in several response aspects critical to protecting both animals and humans from infections. Whereas Uganda has progressed well and developed capacities for responding to outbreaks of emerging infectious diseases especially highly pathogenic diseases like ebola, Marburg, COVID-19 etc, the same efforts are not applied to zoonotic diseases of animal origin like anthrax, Rift Valley fever among others. The established surveillance system and associated capacity building to respond to outbreaks is strong under the Ministry of Health (MoH) compared to the counterpart Ministry of Agriculture, Animal Industry and Fisheries (MAAIF). This creates a serious gap in outbreak response for zoonotic diseases of animal origin with associated risks to human health. One health approach well recognised to bridge this gap, remains to be fully appreciated and applied across different responsible ministries and institutions. Hence, we still need more dedicated efforts to address the gaps in outbreak preparedness and response identified in our research with a special focus on training district local government task force personnel using one health approach.
Anthrax outbreak in Uganda: Outbreak response lessons
Uganda, a tropical country with an equator that transects in the middle, is a hotspot for several emerging and re-emerging infectious diseases. Most of the diseases are zoonotic, of which more than 60% originate from wild and domestic species.