EAC set to launch second phase of Regional Network of Public Health Reference Laboratories for Communicable Diseases Project
East African Community Headquarters, Arusha, Tanzania, 9th June, 2021: The second phase of the EAC Regional Network of Public Health Reference Laboratories for Communicable Diseases Project will be launched on 11th June, 2021 at the EAC Headquarters in Arusha, Tanzania.
Funded by the Federal Government of Germany through the German Development Bank (KfW), the three year second phase of the project is set to further strengthen the capacities of the EAC Partner States to respond to outbreaks of infectious diseases, including bacterial diseases and cross-border epidemics.
In addition, the project will also have a special focus on Anti-Microbial Resistance (AMR) Surveillance.
The EAC Secretariat, as the Project Executing Agent (PAE), shall cooperate with the national public health reference laboratories in the Partner States to create the EAC Regional Network of Public Health Reference Laboratories for Communicable Diseases.
The main implementating agencies of the project in the Partner States shall be Institut National de Santé Publique, Burundi; National Public Health Laboratory, Kenya; National Reference Laboratory, Rwanda; National Health Laboratory Quality Assurance and Training Centre, Tanzania; National Public Health Laboratory and National Blood Transfusion Service, South Sudan, and; Central Public Health Laboratories, Uganda.
During its implementation, the project will focus on the following areas:
- procurement of six (6) container-based mobile laboratory units and equipment for bacterial culture and mobile field sequencing/bioinformatics for rapid pathogen identification and AMR testing; consumables and test kits and high clearance all-terrain vehicles for transporting the container-based laboratory;
- training of the EAC Partner States public health laboratory personnel to the required level of competency to operate the container-based mobile laboratories for AMR surveillance;
- upgrading and maintenance of the Laboratory Information Management System (LIMS) developed under Phase I and integration of the container-based laboratories to facilitate data/information transfer from/to the field sites;
- regional coordination and policy dialogue through the EAC Secretariat for exchange of experiences and knowledge; and
- provision of technical and procurement support to the EAC as the PAE through Bernhard-Nocht Institute for Tropical Medicine (BNITM); and
The EAC Regional Network of Public Health Reference Laboratories for Communicable Diseases Project is in line with the EAC ‘One Health’ approach in disease management. The ‘One Health’ approach involves how all sectors of society that would be affected by a disease outbreak could contribute to preventing and combating the disease and to mitigating its impact.
For more information, please contact:
Simon Peter Owaka
Senior Public Relations Officer
Corporate Communications and Public Affairs Department
EAC Secretariat
Arusha, Tanzania
Tel: +255 768 552087
Email: sowaka [at] eachq.org
About the East African Community Secretariat:
The East African Community (EAC) is a regional intergovernmental organisation of six Partner States, comprising Burundi, Kenya, Rwanda, South Sudan, Tanzania and Uganda, with its headquarters in Arusha, Tanzania.
The EAC Secretariat is ISO 9001: 2015 Certified