The County Government of Nakuru is banking on collaboration of specialists from different sectors in a new strategy to eradicate zoonotic diseases.
The strategy dubbed the “Nakuru County One Health Unit” (COHU) approach involves a multi-sectoral collaboration of the human, animal and environmental health sectors, among other stakeholders.
In the past, these experts (human health, environment and animal health) have been working independently to address the emergence and spread of zoonotic diseases, which are transmitted through interactions between animals, humans and their shared environments.
Livestock, Fisheries, and Veterinary Services Chief Officer, Dr Michael Cheruiyot observed that the strategy seeks to unite human, animal and environmental health for better prevention and control of zoonosis, a disease which can be transmitted from animals to humans.
Dr Cheruiyot spoke when he hosted a team from Meru County who visited Nakuru on a benchmarking study of the One Health Unit (COHU)approach, a concept that enhances the health of people, animals, and the environment.
The Chief Officer explained that COHU is aimed at strengthening the prevention, surveillance, response, and control of priority zoonotic diseases at the human, animal, and environment interphase like Rabies, Anthrax, Brucellosis, and Rift Valley Fever.
He revealed that they are working with various stakeholders to set up One Health units to build capacity and coordinate efforts to address emerging zoonosis.
“This will enable us to better coordinate surveillance and control of these diseases. We are looking at having better coordination efforts at all the 11 Sub-Counties,” he explained.
“Event-Based Surveillance (EBS) does not only deal with zoonosis but also other threats to human health and socioeconomic like Antimicrobial Resistance (AMR), food safety, and public health events of epidemic and pandemic potential,” Dr Cheruiyot added.
While noting that the national government has listed some of the priority zoonotic diseases in the country such as Rift Valley Fever, rabies, anthrax and brucellosis due to prevalence and economic burden, the Chief Officer indicated that the devolved unit has initiated surveillance for zoonotic diseases, aiming to strengthen collaboration between human and animal health sectors and improve public health outcomes through early detection of zoonotic disease events.
The Ministry of Health estimates that rabies causes 2,000 deaths annually. It is spread through an animal bite. Animals most likely to spread rabies include dogs, bats, coyotes, foxes, skunks and raccoons.
A new World Health Organization (WHO) analysis shows that Africa is facing a growing risk of outbreaks caused by zoonotic pathogens. There has been a 63 per cent increase in the number of zoonotic outbreaks in the region in the decade, from 2014-2024 compared to 2001-2011.
Dr Cheruiyot attributed the rise of zoonotic diseases to human encroachment into wildlife habitats, tropical climate, climate change and wildlife trade around the globe.
Rift Valley Fever outbreaks are recurrent in Kenya and there have been several reported cases in the past (1998, 2006-2007, 2014, 2018, 2023)
Other zoonotic diseases that are a concern in Kenya include anthrax, monkey pox, brucellosis, trypanosomiasis, Bovine Tuberculosis, Ebola, Sars (severe acute respiratory syndrome), Bird flu and swine flu among others.
Dr Cheruiyot pointed out that Community-based surveillance and engagement are important components of a successful zoonotic disease surveillance program. He added that some challenges to effective zoonotic disease surveillance in Kenya include data sharing, inadequate capacity for timely response, and insufficient funding.
“Annually, 59,000 people across the world die from rabies and in Kenya, it is estimated that about 2,000 people die from the disease. Surveillance data for the last three years indicates that about 100 cases of rabies are reported annually in the country. It is also estimated that about 10 outbreaks of anthrax cases occur and when they happen, three or five animals may be affected and end up dying,” Dr Cheruiyot explained.
Brucellosis is more widespread. From 2021 to 2023 data, there are about 100,000 cases of suspected brucellosis contracted from taking poorly boiled milk and meat.
“The COHU approach is key in ensuring that we optimize how each of the sectors work so that we can safeguard the health of the animals, humans, and the environment since their health is interlinked,” said the Chief Officer
He noted that zoonotic diseases are very important at the human, livestock, and wildlife interface.
According to veterinary experts one of the neglected zoonotic diseases is Bovine Tuberculosis which is caused by a bacterium called Mycobacterium bovis and mainly affects the respiratory and lymphatic system of cattle. Other species can be affected including human beings.
Dr Cheruiyot urged communities that live close to animals especially in the pastoral communities to exercise caution and work closely with vet authorities. Those working in slaughterhouses should also be cautious and report to relevant authorities any unusual signs in animals.
He advised pastoralists and the communities to prevent zoonotic diseases by ensuring that their animals are vaccinated.
“There is also a need to report to veterinary officers when diseases are occurring in their community so that the right treatment is administered and control measures are put in place so that it does not spread. It is also good to avoid some of the risk practices that expose them to getting these diseases. For instance, an animal that is sick should not be consumed and also one that has died needs to be buried to avoid the spread of the disease,” he said.
According to the World Health Organization (WHO) around three-quarters of emerging infectious diseases that affect people in low-income countries have their origins in wild and domestic animals.
It is estimated that 60 per cent of known infectious diseases in humans and about 75 per cent of all emerging infectious diseases are zoonotic – meaning that they are spread from animals to humans. For instance, Ebola, Covid-19, the Zika virus and bird flu are all considered zoonosis, meaning they jumped from animals to people.
According to a 2022 report by the International Livestock Research Institute (ILRI), just 13 of the 200 known zoonotic diseases cause 2.2 million deaths a year, mostly in developing nations.
The report titled “Preventing the next pandemic: Zoonotic diseases and how to break the chain of transmission” indicates that there is a need to fully understand the transmission of these infections, the threats they pose to human to this end, a livestock-inclusive “One Health” agenda would go a long way in helping protect the whole world against pandemic diseases.
“Investments in healthier and sustainable livestock systems would benefit the three interconnected areas of ‘One Health’ — animal, human and environment, and reduce the risk of disease spillovers,” says ILRI.
To protect human health, Dr Cheruiyot highlighted some practical ways to improve livestock systems and unlock benefits for global health and development while reducing pandemic outbreaks including investing in vaccines and diagnostics to prevent disease transmission between animals and humans
Dr Cheruiyot said that though some of the well-known zoonotic ailments such as tuberculosis, rabbit fever, rabies, Toxocariasis, HIV/Aids and among others had been around for centuries, new ailments were emerging due to environmental changes and increased human interaction through local and international travel.
“Diseases break out at community level. A surveillance system based at the community level will ensure prompt action is undertaken before an outbreak escalates into a pandemic” stated the Chief Officer.
Covid-19 is believed to have emerged in a meat market in the central Chinese city of Wuhan.
Experts have maintained that Covid-19 originated from bats and could have been transmitted on through another mammal, probably a pangolin, an endangered species whose meat and scales are vastly valued in parts of Asia.
Dr Cheruiyot observed that while grooming and vaccination of domestic animals was essential for their owners’ safety, very few Kenyans took their pets to the vets, and neither washed nor shampooed them.
“Domestic animals play an important role in our lives, we keep them for functional reasons like cats to catch or chase away mice, dogs to guard homesteads, rabbits for meat and birds for ornamental purposes.
Animal diseases and infections, like rabies, are transmitted through contact with infected animals through bites and scratches, or through ingestion by man. Infections can also be transmitted through vectors like ticks and mites” noted the Chief Officer.
He advised pet owners to take their animals or birds to the vets whenever they show any signs of diseases or illnesses.
Dr Cheruiyot asked them to ensure that their pets are up to date with their vaccinations, especially rabies, parvovirus and Distemper Hepatitis Leptospirosis Parainfluenza (DHLP). Meat and meat products, he stated, should be properly cooked before being consumed.
Pets, especially dogs, should be washed and groomed regularly at least once a week or after two weeks with a shampoo that kills and prevents external parasites.
Pets’ food and water dishes should be kept separately from the family dishes. Pet’s cages or kennels should be washed frequently to avoid tick and flea infestation” explained the Chief Officer.
According to the UN Environment Programme (UNEP), 60 percent of human infectious diseases originate from animals.
This figure climbs to 75 percent for “emerging” diseases such as Ebola, HIV, avian flu, Zika, or SARS, another type of coronavirus.
The IPBES Global Assessment Report on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services estimates that Zoonosis kill some 700,000 people a year and lists rodents, primates and bats as hosts of three-quarters of viruses transmitted to humans.
People who raise or work with pigs have a higher risk of zoonotic infection. Other professionals at particular risk include veterinarians and meat processing workers.
By Jane Ngugi
