Continuous tracking of coronavirus threats, including COVID-19, provides the scientific foundation for public health decisions. It enables WHO and countries to act based on real-time and reliable data, particularly when making decisions around vaccination. This webinar aims to highlight the critical role of WHO’s global surveillance and risk assessment in monitoring coronavirus threats and guiding evidence-informed vaccination strategies.
Objectives
- To raise awareness of Rift Valley fever (RVF) and provide an update on the current outbreak in Senegal and Mauritania,
- To highlight the community protection dimensions of RVF prevention and control, with a focus on community engagement, communication, and social protection,
- To identify practical actions and evidence gaps where community-centred approaches can strengthen outbreak response.
Speakers
Introduction of EPI-WIN, housekeeping, introduction to topic and speakers and slido: EPI-WIN Science and Knowledge Translation, WHO headquarters
Welcome remarks:
- The importance of community protection in the current RVF outbreak: Kai von Harbou, Unit Head, Community Resilience and Protection, WHO headquarters
- Defining priorities for community-based research and interventions: Nina Gobat, Senior Technical Officer, Community Resilience and Protection, WHO headquarters
- WHO update: What is RVF and what is happening in the current outbreak: Alejandro Costa,Viral Hemorrhagic Fevers (VHF), Epidemic Pandemic Management (EPM) department, WHO headquarters
Panel Discussion:
- Community-based priorities from the current outbreak in Senegal: Albert Gautier Ndione, Socio-anthropologist, COUS emergency response team in Senegal, Cheikh Anta Diop University, Dakar
- Community-Based Surveillance (CBS) to strengthen early detection and community level reporting of health events, including RVF: Mame Yacine Mbodj, Socio-anthropologist, Institute Pasteur, Dakar
- Learnings from the RVF outbreak in Rwanda March: Anselme Shyaka, One Health Specialist, University of Global Health Equity, Rwanda
- The vital role of local communities in tackling RVF outbreaks: a senior veterinarian’s view from the field: Mathioro Fall, Head of the Animal Health Protection Division, Directorate of Veterinary Services, Senegal
Q&A
Closing: EPI-WIN Science and Knowledge Translation, WHO headquarters