Zoonotic Diseases
Burundi faces a high burden of zoonotic diseases, particularly those linked to poor sanitation, close human-animal interactions, and limited veterinary infrastructure. These conditions facilitate the spread of diseases transmitted between animals and humans.
Despite the known risks, there are significant research and surveillance gaps in understanding zoonotic disease transmission dynamics and community-level risk factors. Integrated One Health approaches—which link human, animal, and environmental health—remain underdeveloped.
Most existing data are fragmented, geographically limited, and fail to integrate insights across human, animal, and environmental health domains. This fragmentation significantly limits Burundi’s ability to develop and implement effective One Health strategies.
- Low diagnostic capacity and inconsistently enforced food safety regulations pose additional challenges.
- Weak coordination between researchers, health authorities, and local communities impairs timely interventions.
- Lack of interdisciplinary research frameworks undermines understanding and control of zoonotic transmission routes.
Our team is committed to strengthening local capacity for surveillance of zoonotic diseases, mapping the risks of spillovers, and identifying transmission hotspots. We aim to foster multidisciplinary collaboration, promote targeted community education, and advocate for better integration of One Health strategies to enable effective, evidence-based interventions.