EU for health security in Africa: ECDC4AfricaCDC
ECDC and Africa CDC have initiated a four-year capacity- and partnership-building project.
The project is financially supported by the European Development Fund under the European Commission Directorate-General for International Partnerships (DG INTPA). It is a concrete and important materialisation of the European Union’s (EU) commitment to expand its collaboration in health and to address sustainable health security preparedness for outbreaks.
Through the project, Africa CDC and ECDC will exchange experiences and lessons learned from work with EU Member States on:
- continental harmonised surveillance of infectious diseases;
- data-sharing;
- early detection of threats;
- preparedness;
- risk assessment; and
- rapid response and emergency operations.
The final aim is to adapt all these areas to the needs of Africa CDC.
Implementation
The implementation of the project is structured around three technical Work Packages to deliver key results in technical cooperation between ECDC and Africa CDC in order to:
- strengthen Africa CDC’s capacities in preparedness and response to health threats;
- facilitate harmonised surveillance and disease intelligence of prioritised outbreak-prone communicable diseases at continental level; and
- support the implementation of Africa CDC’s public health workforce development strategy.
Timeframe: January 2021 – December 2024
Funding authority: DG INTPA
Awarded budget: A Contribution Agreement with ECDC of nine million euros and a complementary grant to Africa CDC of one million euros to cover project staffing costs
Work package 1. Preparedness, outbreak response, and emergency operations
Expected result: increased capacities of Africa CDC and its Regional Collaboration Centres to support national CDCs, laboratories and health workforce in preparedness, outbreak response, and coordinated emergency operations.
Work package 2. Surveillance, data management and sharing, and epidemic intelligence
Expected result: a pilot model is accomplished, with lessons learned documented, for the harmonised surveillance of communicable diseases and early warning, harnessing existing regional integrated surveillance and laboratory networks.
Work package 3. Public health workforce development and capacity-building
Expected result: the establishment of a sustainable Africa-based public health workforce development programme in epidemiology is promoted by Africa CDC.