OUR WORK
“Pandemics are the greatest single threat to global health today. TDDA is a flagship programme of the UK Government helping to protect populations and economies around the world, including in the UK.” Graham Gass, Group Head, Africa Regional Department, UK Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office
Epidemics are a global threat, killing millions of people each year. Strong health systems need strong institutions, infrastructure, surveillance systems, and well-trained and equipped staff. Without them, disease outbreaks can quickly become epidemics and then pandemics, which devastate lives and livelihoods.
Tackling deadly diseases in Africa (TDDA) works with governments and communities across sub-Saharan Africa, empowering them to achieve their own ambitions in health security. We are delivering practical changes that strengthen health systems, crisis preparedness and early response mechanisms in Cameroon, Chad, Côte D’Ivoire, Mali, and Uganda.
We work closely with the African Centers for Disease Control (A CDC) and the World Health Organization’s African Regional Office (WHO/AFRO), to reinforce regional efforts at harmonization and cross-border collaboration.
COVID-19 - HOW TDDA IS RESPONDING
In 2020, our work to help build early response mechanisms was adapted and mobilized to respond to the COVID-19 crisis. Rather than focusing solely on pre-crisis preparedness, we are saving lives by providing operational and financial help to community organizations delivering urgent and vital support at scale. Thanks to our ‘feet on the ground’ in our five focus countries, TDDA is uniquely placed to assist with COVID-19 vaccine roll out, including the UN-led COVAX programme. We are discussing with country partners and FCDO how we can assist this initiative, which is increasing access to vaccinations in lower income countries.
MAKING A LASTING DIFFERENCE
TDDA's ambition is to make a lasting impact, locally, regionally and globally. We tackle the systemic causes of health insecurity, not just the symptoms. Instead of fighting fires, this programme helps equip countries to manage disease outbreaks and other health threats before they become public health crises. Our work shows that collective efforts can make a real difference, even in countries facing significant challenges.
EXPERT SUPPORT ON THE GROUND
TDDA is funded by UK aid and led by DAI Global Health. It provides technical expertise and targeted operational support through experts on the ground. The programme is shaped by international standards including International Health Regulations (IHR), Joint External Evaluations, and National Action Plans for Health Security, informed by our nuanced understanding of circumstances on the ground. We help our focus countries to bridge the gap between high-level policy guidelines and operational improvements that really make a difference. Our work reflects the specific challenges and practical realities in each country, thanks to our continuously updated Political Economy Analyses.
PREVENTING ANIMAL-TO-HUMAN DISEASE TRANSMISSION
Zoonotic diseases, in which pathogens jump from animals to humans, account for 75% of all new infectious diseases. With this clear global threat in mind, TDDA supports a ‘One Health’ approach to improve coordination between human, animal and environmental health. We provide advice to strengthen One Health policies and co-ordination across different government ministries and agencies.
“Our TDDA programme provides important evidence to support the work of others. We’re showing that even in challenging contexts, collective action can make a real difference to global health security.” Jeffrey Mecaskey, TDDA Team Leader, DAI Global Health
SAMPLE ACTIVITIES
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Coordinating with government ministries and civil society organisations, to establish shared goals for health security.
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Employing tools such as Joint External Evaluations and One Health simulations to help set national health priorities, using the focus on infectious diseases to accelerate progress towards universal health coverage and IHR compliance.
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Strengthening health surveillance, including processes at border entry points, to ensure decision-makers have the data they need to quickly identify and manage disease outbreaks, and better co-ordinate actions with neighbouring countries.
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Mapping resources and gaps in National Action Plans with WHO/AFRO and systematizing Events Based Surveillance with A CDC.
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Building local emergency response capacity by engaging communities in efforts to prepare and react rapidly, so that local outbreaks do not become epidemics.
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Pre-approving suppliers so that countries can access and deploy resources quickly in emergencies, where needed.
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Providing global stakeholders, including the UK, with timely information enabling standby teams of emergency response specialists to mobilize in-country in the event of outbreaks.
SELECT RESULTS
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Emergency COVID-19 training for over 600 community-based medical staff in Côte D’Ivoire was provided by the Ministry of Health and Public Hygiene, with technical and financial support from TDDA. Training was centred on the city of Abidjan, where the COVID-19 pandemic has hit the hardest.
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In Cameroon, TDDA is supporting the scale-up of COVID-19 diagnostic activities and has widened access to free testing services beyond the capital Yaoundé to six high-risk regions. This effort has improved case detection significantly, identifying 23.7% of Cameroon’s 21,000 confirmed infections as of 30 Sept 2020. We are also recruiting laboratory personnel and providing training.
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In Uganda, we are helping prevent the spread of diseases by improving the skills of border officials. We are supporting the Ministry of Health to provide targeted supervision, on-the-job training and mentoring of 60 health workers at over 40 official points of entry.
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TDDA has facilitated Uganda’s Agriculture Ministry to conduct disease investigations for Rift Valley fever, anthrax and brucellosis among animals, with the aim of predicting and preventing these diseases which threaten human health and food production. Also, workshops on the WHO’s Integrated Disease Surveillance and Response framework were provided for national trainers working across Uganda’s public, animal and environmental health organizations and ministries, supporting efforts to reduce deaths from communicable and non-communicable diseases.