African experts push for stronger epidemic surveillance, research systems

African health leaders have stressed the urgent need to strengthen national epidemic surveillance and research systems as the foundation for regional and global preparedness.

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The call was made at a panel on epidemic surveillance at the 2nd Lassa Fever International Conference in Abidjan, Côte d’Ivoire, on Wednesday.

The event, convened by the West African Health Organisation (WAHO), has the theme: “Beyond Borders: Strengthening Regional Cooperation to Combat Lassa Fever and Emerging Infectious Diseases.”

The gathering seeks to reaffirm regional commitment, mobilise political will, and drive collective action against Lassa fever and other emerging infectious diseases.

West African experts said there is urgent need to strengthen the response to Viral Haemorrhagic Fevers (VHFs), including Lassa fever.

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that experts from Liberia, Guinea, Sierra Leone, Nigeria, Côte d’Ivoire and the World Health Organisation (WHO) shared their experiences and lessons from past VHFs outbreaks, including Ebola and Mpox at the event.

Minnie Sankawulo-Ricks, medical director of Phebe Hospital and School of Nursing, Liberia, said that early detection of outbreaks in her facility begun with a community-based surveillance system integrated into the national health structure.

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Ms Sankawulo-Ricks noted that community health workers and volunteers act as the first line of defence, reporting unusual symptoms, deaths, or disease clusters from even the most remote villages.

“My facility uses WhatsApp groups for real-time reporting between the community, facility and county levels,” she said.

“This has greatly improved the timeliness and accuracy of data shared with health authorities.”

She added that her centre now has a PCR laboratory, reducing test results from more than a week to less than six hours.

However, she highlighted ongoing barriers such as logistical delays, poor infrastructure, limited internet access and inadequate incentives for community health workers.

From Guinea, Alpha Keita, rector of the University of Conakry, underscored the progress in genomic surveillance since the 2013 to 2016 Ebola outbreak.

“In 2013, it took three months to confirm the first Ebola cases. By 2021, confirmation was possible in 24 hours and sequencing within nine days,” he said.

Mr Keita warned that political commitment and sustainable financing are still lacking, with genomic surveillance often dismissed as a “research luxury”.

In Sierra Leone, Donald Grant, head of clinical, public health and research activities related to Lassa fever, recalled how the 117 hotlines introduced during Ebola transformed reporting.

“Today, community health workers and epidemiology trainees feed into an integrated system that covers both human and animal health,” Mr Grant said.

“Yet challenges remain, including internet connectivity, dependence on donor funding and limited laboratory access outside major cities.”

The Deputy Director and Head of the Surveillance Division at the Nigeria Centre for Disease Control and Prevention, Muntari Hassan, called for regional harmonisation of data platforms, noting past efforts by WAHO and ECOWAS to develop a unified reporting system.

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Ibrahima Fall, Global Public Health leader and the CEO of Institut Pasteur de Dakar, said Africa must not only adopt new digital tools but also invest in national analytical capacity.

Mr Fall said 80 per cent of African countries still lack adequate institutional capacity for data analysis.

“Without strong national systems, regional or global platforms cannot function effectively,” he warned.

The Director-General of Health, Côte d’Ivoire, Mamadou Samba, closed the session by stressing that Africa must finance its own research and health priorities, rather than rely on external partners.

“These are our diseases, our families and our populations. Unless we take responsibility and invest in our own systems, progress will remain limited,” Mr Samba said.

NAN reports that the experts agreed that building trust with communities, investing in digital tools and ensuring sustainable domestic financing are critical for Africa’s preparedness against future epidemics.

(NAN)