Table 4 Recommendations agreed upon by ECOWAS for the priority zoonotic diseases (PZDs) and One Health collaboration

One Health coordination

Establish strong regional and national One Health coordination within ECOWAS, including both ministerial and technical-level coordination

Establish a network to facilitate communication, collaboration, and coordination among national level points of contact to address One Health issues for PZDs

Create opportunities to socialize One Health at single sector meetings

Establish an appropriate mechanism to share key reports, meeting outcomes, documents, and guidance across One Health focal points

Create a governance document including roles and responsibilities, guidance for building sustainability, shared budget, and logistics for national and regional One Health coordination

Develop a One Health strategic plan for the ECOWAS region with a focus on the priority zoonotic diseases

Advocate and increase awareness with political leadership and funding to support One Health activities and strategic plans

Facilitate the sharing and linkage of results of One Health assessments and tools used in countries

Ensure One Health advocates and focal points use consistent language around One Health

Advocate for engagement of all 15 member states in major international projects with regional One Health relevancy

Surveillance and laboratory

Strengthen and expand existing relevant regional surveillance networks to incorporate the integration of identified PZDs

Improve the integration of human, animal, and environmental sectors to strengthen a One Health approach to surveillance

Enhance existing surveillance platforms and incorporate the environmental sector for data sharing related to PZDs

Develop coordinated surveillance plans and conduct joint investigations for PZDs that incorporate One Health sectors

Identify gaps and standardize wildlife surveillance across the same ecosystems at the sub-regional level

Create regional guidelines and standard practices for linking surveillance data and systems

Strengthen existing laboratory and diagnostic capacity and integrate these capacities among One Health sectors

Strengthen biosafety and biosecurity for laboratories

Conduct subregional risk mapping of the priority zoonotic diseases to guide and focus surveillance efforts

Response and preparedness

Develop response plans for all PZDs using a One Health approach. Review and update existing plans to ensure they include all One Health sectors at the national, sub-regional, and regional level. Plans should be exercised to ensure coordination between One Health sectors and countries remains strong

Harmonize response plans and standard operating procedures between member states for the PZDs for cross-border assistance with outbreaks

Improve communication by sharing weekly epidemiological reports per sector to ensure all sectors can effectively collaborate and respond

Train One Health rapid response teams to respond to outbreaks at the national or regional levels. Develop a roster of trained individuals within the region

Expand information sharing and coordination structures created during the establishment of Emergency Operations Centers

Prevention and control

Develop and synergize prevention and control programs across One Health sectors and vaccine requisition for the priority zoonotic disease

Develop technical networks to coordinate activities for the PZDs at the national, sub-regional, and regional levels

Harmonize sub-regional and regional legislative efforts for the control and prevention of PZDs

Workforce development

Conduct human resource mapping to evaluate current capacity, infrastructure, training institutions, and opportunities for One Health

Implement training and capacity building programs at the regional, subregional, or national level to build and expand the core workforce among the human health, animal health, and environmental health sectors

Train laboratory staff on biosafety and biosecurity to build and strengthen diagnostic capacity and link between One Health sectors

Provide risk communication training and train dedicated communications staff across sectors

Establish a trained group of One Health professionals to respond jointly to outbreaks

Training, field experience, and exercises should be conducted jointly through a One Health approach bringing together One Health sectors

Identify and allocate resources to ensure that sustainable in-service training is provided to establish and maintain a strong workforce able to address priority zoonotic diseases and other One Health Issues

Research needs

Convene experts from One Health sectors across ECOWAS to identify specific research needs for PZDs

Develop a regional network of multisectoral and multidisciplinary researchers whose work focuses on PZDs to facilitate information sharing

Ensure the regional network of researchers is linked with other One Health networks, filed epidemiologists, laboratorians, and the regional One Health coordination mechanism