Kenya, Uganda, and Tanzania among countries to benefit from foot and mouth disease vaccine

 

When farmers in Rongai, Nakuru County were forced to use "busaa", local brew, to contain foot and mouth disease oubreak in 2028. [File, Standard]

Kenya and her neighbours Uganda and Tanzania are set to benefit from the first-ever Foot and Mouth Disease (FMD) vaccine.

This follows the registration of the first quadrivalent vaccine tailored for the East African Region in a renewed effort to control Foot and Mouth Disease.

Other countries targeted in the project are Rwanda, Ethiopia and Burundi.

Being one of the most infectious livestock diseases in the world, Foot and Mouth Disease (FMD) presents a constant global threat to animal trade and country economies.

 Researchers say its effect can devastate livestock productivity and severely compromise small-scale farmers’ livelihoods and food security.

Thus, the researchers call for vaccination which is proven to effectively control FMD. 

Foot and Mouth Disease is an infectious viral infection of cloven-hoofed farm animals like cattle, sheep, goats, camels, and pigs.

It also affects wild animals such as buffaloes and deer.

The disease has an economic impact as it causes decreased milk production, abortions and poor body condition. Deaths may occur especially in young or already weakened animals. 

In 2019, the country experienced the worst outbreak of FMD where a total of 143 outbreaks were reported across 32 counties with serious economic losses recorded by farmers.

The Directorate of Veterinary Services was alarmed by this and quickly put up a team of specialists to address the cause of the outbreaks and prevent the further spread of the disease.  

The root cause of the problem has been attributed to uncontrolled animal movements across counties.

The FMD virus spreads between animals through direct and indirect contact with infected animals, their products or other materials.

Historically, there has not been a registered quadrivalent vaccine that could protect against all strains circulating in Eastern Africa.

With the discovery, the region is now one step closer to FMD control as formally announced on September 26 at FAO headquarters in Rome.

Launched in February 2020, the AgResults FMD Vaccine Challenge Project is an eight-year $17.34 million Pay-for-Results prize competition managed by GALVmed that supports the development and uptake of high-quality quadrivalent FMD vaccines tailored to meet the needs of Eastern Africa.

The project is being run in two phases with the first one being the development phase that involves participating manufacturers' work to develop a regionally relevant FMD vaccine that meets certain predefined criteria.

The second phase is the vaccine distribution cost-share which formally kicked off on October 1, 2024.

The project uses a cost-share mechanism to drive the uptake and distribution of high-quality FMD vaccines.

The cost-share aims to reduce the cost-per-dose for buyers, enabling public and private sector actors to better combat FMD through access to more effective vaccines.

“We are thrilled to recognize the registration of biopharma’s FMD vaccine in Eastern Africa,” said Nina Henning, Project Manager Team Lead at GALVmed.

Henning said the cost-share will catalyse the initial distribution of approved vaccines through both public and private sector channels, with the goal of ultimately reducing the negative impacts of FMD on farmer livelihoods.

Dr Anna Rose Ademun, Commissioner of Animal Health and Chief Veterinary Office (CVO), World Organization for Animal Health said that availing these high-quality FMD vaccines, it marks a significant milestone for the management and control of Foot and Mouth Disease in Eastern Africa.

“We commend the AgResults FMD Team and donors for this initiative and encourage the support to make these vaccines accessible to livestock farmers,” she said.