By focusing on diagnostic infrastructure and workforce development, the project didn’t just build capacity, it cultivated a resilient, community-embedded health force equipped to detect and respond to zoonotic threats now and into the future.
Across Kenya’s arid and semi-arid regions (ASALs), where pastoralism thrives and human-animal interaction is constant, the risk of zoonotic disease outbreaks is ever-present. Recognizing this, our DTRA-funded project, led by Colorado State University and the University of Nairobi, in collaboration with Isiolo and Kajiado County governments, set out to strengthen zoonotic disease diagnostic capacity in frontline health systems through a collaborative, One Health approach.
This five-year initiative achieved several milestones that transformed healthcare readiness and surveillance in these remote, high-risk areas:
Was launched in 13 health facilities, logging 4,036 patient records and 11,047 lab tests.
Were collected for human serosurveillance, and 337 livestock samples analysed for zoonotic pathogens.
The system helped detect: Rift Valley Fever (Nov 2020), Yellow Fever (Jan 2022), and Visceral Leishmaniasis (Sept 2022).
79 One Health trainers (ToTs) empowered to lead outbreak response.
Achieved KENAS accreditation (ISO 15189:2012) — a national benchmark in lab standards.
Identified zoonotic risks like Brucellosis, RVF, Q-Fever, and CCHFV across Kajiado and Isiolo.
Trained to recognize and report and respond to local zoonotic disease risks.
