General description

The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) was founded in 1945 with a mandate to raise levels of nutrition and standards of living, to improve agricultural productivity, and to better the condition of rural populations. The main goals of FAO are (i) the eradication of hunger, food insecurity and malnutrition, (ii) the elimination of poverty and the driving forward of economic and social progress for all, (iii) the sustainable management and utilization of natural resources, including land, water, air, climate and genetic resources for the benefit of present and future generations and (iv) to increase the resilience of livelihoods to threats and crises. FAO is active in land and water development, plant and animal production, forestry, fisheries, economic and social policy, investment, nutrition, food standards and commodities and trade.

The severity of the trypanosomosis constraint to agricultural development in Africa has long been recognized by FAO, which in 1997 launched the Programme Against African Trypanosomosis (PAAT). PAAT is a FAO statutory body, established by the 29th FAO Conference (Resolution 5/1997). The Secretariat of PAAT, hosted by FAO, also includes the World Health Organization (WHO), the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), and the African Union, through its Interafrican Bureau for Animal Resources (AU–IBAR). PAAT mission is to assist trypanosomosis-affected countries in lifting the constraints that the disease poses to the attainment of the sustainable development goals.

FAO activities within PAAT include (i) support to the formulation of policies and strategies for trypanosomosis control, (ii) capacity development and training, (iii) disease risk mapping and data management, (iv) development and dissemination of technical and scientific publications, guidelines and manuals, and (v) development and piloting of innovative control tools and approaches.

In the area of policy support, FAO spearheaded the development and promotion of the progressive control pathway (PCP) for animal trypanosomosis. In the area of capacity development and training, FAO’s focus is placed on risk mapping and data management for evidence-based decision-making. This resulted in the development of a number of national-level information systems of AT and its vectors, also called ‘atlases’ (e.g. Sudan, Mali, Kenya, Zimbabwe and Burkina Faso). The continental atlas of tsetse and AT is also under development within PAAT.

Role in the project

FAO is member of the project management team, exploitation committee and scientific committee. In WP3 FAO will be responsible for coordination (i.e. WP3 leader). Furthermore, it will complete the continental atlas of tsetse and AT, and supervise and support the development and update of national atlases. In WP4 FAO will support coordination and all work package activities, including the assessment of the socio-economic burden of AT at the continental, national, and local level, and the modelling of the risk of AT spread, including to Europe. In WP5, FAO will be responsible for coordination (i.e. WP5 leader). Furthermore, FAO will coordinate the development and publication of the guidelines for the progressive control of AT, and support the streamlining of the guidelines into national strategies and policies. FAO will also contribute to capacity building (WP6) and to project coordination, dissemination and outreach (WP7).