One Health

The Urban-Suburban Nexus towards One Health approach

 

The One Health Education and Research project is funded by NORAD (Norwegian Agency for Development Cooperation) through the NORHED II Programme (Norwegian Programme for Capacity Development in Higher Education and Research for Development).

The project core concept "One Health" is a collaborative, multisectoral, and trans-disciplinary approach - working at local, regional, national, and global levels - to achieve optimal health and well-being recognizing the interconnections between humans, animals, and their shared environment. The approach is used to design and implement programmes, policies, legislation and research in which multiple sectors communicate and work together to achieve better public health outcomes.

The project brings together a multi-disciplinary consortium from The Arctic University of Norway (UiT), the Norwegian Veterinary Institute (NVI), the Norwegian Institute of Bioeconomy Research (NIBIO), Addis Ababa University (AAU), and the Malawi University of Science and Technology (MUST) to address the gaps in the training of One Health professionals at AAU (Ethiopia) and MUST (Malawi). The novel training program will serve as a model for adaptation and upscaling to other countries in the region.

Project implementation strategy

Pillar 1 – One Health Curriculum development

  • The curriculum will be designed around key One Health framework and implement in AAU and MUST

Pillar 2 – Capacity building for the staffs and students of AAU and MUST

  • One Health Master's program (40 students - home-based and south-south mobility).
  • One Health PhD program (7 students - home-based and south-north mobility).
  • Postdoc (3 - home-based and south-north mobility).
  • Sheard term training for laboratory technicians
  • Short term project management training.
  • Short term financial and administrative capacity training.

Pillar 3 – Implementation One Health research in Addis Ababa and Blantyre

  • The One Health research entitled "The Urban-Suburban Nexus of food, water, energy, housing, and waste management towards One Health approach " will be implemented considering Addis Ababa and Blantyre as a project area and the health challenge in the project area will be the base for the research project of Masters, PhD, and postdoc research fellows.

Pillar 4 – Engagement with relevant stakeholders, and dissemination of knowledge

  • Build a network with key stakeholders and provide effective dissemination of the project results - create networking and MoUs with strategic partnerships, development of knowledge hubs, publications and policy briefs, seminars, workshops, conferences, and publication in peer-reviewed journals and books.

Pillar 5 – Enhancing system, infrastructure and equipment's for One Health education & research

  • Improve institutional system, infrastructure and equipment that give better access to education and research facilities, increase the opportunities for effective teaching/learning, and facilitates equitable access and inclusion.

  • Establishment of Learning Management Systems (LMS) (Smartboard), provision of laptops, internet connectivity, books, and relevant laboratory equipment are the main outputs.

 

Work packages structure

The project consists of a interdisciplinary consortium involving human, animal, and environmental health disciplines, curriculum development, and One Health expertise.

  • WP1 (Project Management) and WP11 (Communication and Dissemination) span across the whole project lifetime aiming to ensure smooth project implementation as well as boosting its wider dissemination and promotion.

  • WP2 will have a key role in establishing a base for Quality One Health education and research by developing systems, infrastructure, &curriculum.

  • WP3 (human health in the urban-suburban area) and WP4 (animal health in the urban-suburban area) investigate the key health concerns similar to zoonotic disease networks, emerging diseases in the sense of global health preparedness, and health-related challenges such as antimicrobial resistance (AMR).

  • WP5 to WP9 investigates environmental health aspects of One Health, which includes WP5 (waste and wastewater management), WP6 (housing and built environment), WP7 (water resource management), WP8 (food production), and WP9 (energy management).

  • The results of this WP3 to WP9 will use as an input for One health modeling; the links of nexus and One Health elements, health risk assessment and management frameworks, development of intervention strategy and sustainability analysis and planning in WP10 (One Health - Modelling and Sustainability).


Project Organisational Structure

 Target groups

The target groups include

  • Students, academic and research staffs, management and administration staff, technical staff of Addis Ababa University and Malawi University of Science and Technology.

  •  Vulnerable populations such as female students, students and staff with disdisabilities, people living with albinism and people living with HIV and AIDS.

  • Relevant actors, policymakers and practitioners involved in the broad perspective of health and resource management (municipalities, public health institutions, urban agriculture sector, water authority, environmental authorities, energy generators, distributors and regulators).

  • The public (urban and suburban dwellers).

  • The scientific community (regional, national, and global).