Map. Officially reported HPAI outbreaks (H5, H5N1, H5N2, H7 and H7N6 subtypes) in sub-Saharan Africa, by onset date (1 October 2023 to date)

Note: Map A shows confirmed HPAI events observed from 1 October to 13 June 2024 (current wave).
Map B shows HPAI events observed from 1 October 2022 to 30 September 2023 (previous wave).

For a summary of H5N1, H5N6, and H5N8 HPAI events reported in sub-Saharan African countries in previous waves (i.e. before 1 October 2023) please contact EMPRES-Animal Health

FAO's support to countries or by country

Global level

• FAO and WOAH released the Global strategy for the prevention and control of high pathogenic avian influenza (2024–2033) under the Global Framework for the Progressive Control of Transboundary Animal Diseases (GF-TADs) [link] on 27 May 2024, on the sidelines of the annual General Session of WOAH.
• OFFLU, with the support of the FAO, is organising a webinar on the avian influenza vaccine matching for poultry in July 2024, to provide a technical overview, engage stakeholders and create a network and feedback forum for stakeholders.
• Joint FAO/IAEA Centre (Nuclear Techniques in Food and Agriculture) organized a webinar entitled “Highly Pathogenic Avian Influenza – UPDATE” on 9 May 2024.
• A three-day workshop of the Wildlife Health Intelligence Network (WHIN) was held in FAO Rome from 6 to 8 May 2024. The network is working towards developing a global community of practice around wildlife surveillance which will be relevant to zoonotic influenza.
• The FAO Virtual Learning Centers have launched a new self-paced virtual learning course on avian influenza (AI). The course aims to raise awareness of AI and to develop capacity on its detection and prevention. It is available here. This is an introductory course, designed for a range of stakeholders with an interest in AI. It is intended to be useful for veterinarians, veterinary paraprofessionals and others working in the poultry industries. There are six short modules, each of approximately fifteen to twenty minutes duration. You can study these at a time and place to suit you and use them as a ready-reference resource as needed. The course supports multiple platforms and can be studied on a smartphone, as well as on a computer or a tablet device. The course is now available also in Spanish and Portuguese.

Regional level

• Inter-regional workshop on biosafety/biosecurity for veterinary laboratories – eastern and southern Africa and west and central Africa will be jointly held by FAO Emergency Centre for Transboundary Animal Disease Control (ECTAD) regional offices in Eastern and Southern Africa (ESA) and West and Central Africa (WCA), in Zambia in July.
• From 11 to 14 June 2024, the Planning, Coordination, and Capacity Building Workshop for Animal Health Prevention, Preparedness, and Rapid Response in the Africa Region will take place in Ada, Ghana.
• FAO ECTAD WCA monitors suspected HPAI outbreaks in several countries in the region and provides various assistance, including laboratory reagents and consumables, as well as transport of specimens to the reference laboratory Istituto Zooprofilattico Sperimentale delle Venezie (IZSVe-Italy) for confirmation and sequencing.
• In West Africa, FAO ECTAD WCA has supported poultry value chain studies and the development of biosecurity manuals for poultry farms and live bird markets in Togo and Benin under the USAID funded project “Emergency assistance for prevention and control of Highly Pathogenic Avian Influenza (HPAI) in selected Countries in Africa”.
• FAO ECTAD WCA held a Regional Training of Surveillance Evaluation Tool (SET) Evaluators in West and Central Africa in Abidjan (Cote D’Ivoire) from 25 to 29 March 2024.
• FAO ECTAD ESA supports procurement of reagents (primers, probes, polymerase chain reaction (PCR) kits, extraction kits) and consumables in support of timely diagnostic testing and to enhance preparedness in Ethiopia, Kenya, the United Republic of Tanzania and Uganda through USAID funded Global Health Security (GHS) programme.
• ECTAD ESA is supporting Kenya, Ethiopia, the United Republic of Tanzania, Zambia, Zimbabwe enhance biosecurity in poultry farms which contributes to minimising HPAI incursion. Poultry value chain risk assessment along the entire poultry value chain is planned in 10 countries namely Ethiopia, Kenya, Madagascar, Malawi, Mozambique, Rwanda, South Sudan, the United Republic of Tanzania, Uganda and Zambia as a part of ECTAD's ongoing support for HPAI risk mitigation/management.
• The Virtual Learning Centre in West Africa is providing a four-week Avian Influenza tutored course in English and French.
• A regional training course on infectious substances shipment according to the regulations of the International Air Transport Association (IATA) for Eastern and Southern Africa was conducted in Nairobi in June 2024. The same training course for Western and Central Africa will be held in Dakar (French) and Accra (English) in June-July 2024.
• FAO ECTAD ESA and WCA have been coordinating annual Proficiency testing schemes supported by USAID for AIV diagnosis at national and sub-national level since 2008, through Letter of Agreement signed between FAO and WOAH reference laboratory (IZSVe- Italy) prepared by ECTAD HQ.

National level

Benin:

• A poultry value chain study was conducted, resulting in the development of a biosafety manual aimed at enhancing biosafety measures in poultry farms and live bird markets. Reports titled "Study of Poultry Value Chains and Risk Factors for Highly Pathogenic Avian Influenza (HPAI) in Benin" have been finalized.
• A training of trainers on biosecurity measures and best practices for managing poultry farms was conducted, using both the Biosecurity Manual for Commercial Poultry Farms and the Biosecurity Manual for Live Poultry Markets in Benin.
• FAO ECTAD supported Benin by providing reagents, disinfectants, and personal protective equipment (PPE).

Burkina Faso:

• Samples collected in March 2024 were analysed at IZSVe; the result showed that four viruses obtained were H5N1 HPAI clade 2.3.4.4b; these viruses cluster together in a long phylogenetic branch, suggesting that these viruses may have been circulating; and are related to the H5N1 HPAI viruses of Nigeria (2021-2022) and Niger (2022-2023); but not cluster with the 2021 Burkina isolates, suggesting a separate virus introduction.
• As part of the Technical Cooperation Programme (TCP) project TCP/BKF/3901, FAO is supporting the strengthening of capacities to combat HPAI as well as the preparation for the implementation of recovery mechanisms for the poultry industry. The project has trained 175 people in epidemiological surveillance of HPAI; and to develop training modules on good poultry farming practices, hygiene and biosecurity measures on farms with the training of 46 trainers; the trainers raised awareness among 300 model poultry breeders from 10 regions of Burkina. The project also made it possible to train 30 communicators and journalists from the written and audiovisual press on HPAI.
• Under the FAO TCP project on HPAI, the General Directorate of Veterinary Services conducted active surveillance around the outbreak and developed eight tools through a Letter of Agreement. These include: Case Definition of HPAI, HPAI Investigation Form, HPAI Notification Form, HPAI Outbreak Information/Management Form, Standard Operating Procedure (SOP) for sampling and diagnosis in case of suspected HPAI, SOP on communication during an HPAI crisis, SOP on the donning/doffing PPE, SOP on biosecurity measures in poultry farms in case of suspected HPAI.

Côte d’Ivoire:

• HPAI surveillance is being conducted by the Département des Services Vétérinaires and the Laboratoire National d'Appui au Développement Agricole (LANADA), in collaboration with the Institut Pasteur de Côte d'Ivoire and the Office Ivoirien des Parcs et Réserves in One Health approach, to assess the Avian Influenza situation, supported by FAO.

Democratic Republic of the Congo:

• Following the discovery of avian influenza in South Africa and taking into account trade between South Africa and the Democratic Republic of the Congo, the veterinary services have been put on alert. FAO, through ECTAD, had already pre-positioned Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) and other sampling equipment in high-risk provinces.

Ethiopia:

• To prevent the incidence and spread of major poultry diseases in a poultry farm, FAO ECTAD Ethiopia, supported by the Fleming Fund, is now implementing Broiler Farmer Field Schools (FFS) in five field sites. The holistic approach will incorporate basic principles of biosecurity, disease prevention, and reduction of the use of antimicrobials. For Broiler FFS voluntary producers, healthy poultry production, improve production and productivity has been identified for key subjects; a Base Line Assessment was conducted to assess Farm Background and Biosecurity implementation status, disease transmission, and to collect basic farm economics data using Kobo tool as part of Broiler farm FFS. This is a part of the study/experimentation of FFS for broiler farms aiming at prevention/reduction of major poultry diseases having an impact on economy and public health, and thereby reducing the need for antimicrobials and improving productivity.
• The Ministry of Agriculture has developed a comprehensive National Biosecurity Management Guideline for Poultry Farms to establish a standardized framework of biosecurity practices that are applicable to all poultry producers and stakeholders. The finalization of the guideline is underway, and it will serve as a valuable resource to provide guidance and support to poultry farm owners in implementing effective biosecurity measures.

Gambia:

• The Department of Livestock Services and in collaboration with FAO conducted a comprehensive nationwide public sensitization and awareness campaign nation. The campaign raises awareness and informed rural communities about HPAI, the need to report suspected incidents, and biosecurity measures that are essential to safeguarding public health, improving poultry production, and protecting livelihoods.

Ghana:

• The FAO's PMP-TAB initiative is being implemented to safeguard poultry health and ensure industry sustainability through biosecurity efforts that address specific needs.

Guinea:

• Over the coming months, FAO plans to support the training of actors in the value chain of the poultry sector on biosecurity, the training of veterinary service agents from very high- and high-risk prefectures on good management practices, emergencies, carrying out local investigative surveys and active surveillance in the field, and supervision missions of field investigations; because the disease is still far from being controlled.
• FAO ECTAD supports Guinea by providing reagents, disinfectants and PPE.

Kenya:

• The FAO ECTAD, through the Global Health Security Program, is supporting Kenya's Directorate of Veterinary Services in collaborating on biosafety and biosecurity actions by developing, reviewing, and validating the Biosafety Manual and National Veterinary Waste Management Guidelines.
• FAO is supporting Kenya Animal Bio-Surveillance (KABS) disease reporting platform roll-out for syndromic surveillance and the refresher trainings.

Liberia:

• The Ministry of Agriculture in collaboration with FAO plans to conduct active surveillance for Low Pathogenicity Avian Influenza (LPAI)/HPAI in five high risk counties (Montserrado, Nimba, Grand Cape Mount, Bomi, Grand Bassa) ) from 22 June to 1 July 2024. The survey will target commercial farms, free range village poultry and live bird markets.
• Laboratory reagents for the diagnosis of AI and Newcastle Disease are being procured under the ECTAD GHS programme.
• Training of a new batch of Community-Based Animal Health Workers (CAHWs) is being planned for July 2024 to enhance surveillance at the grassroots level. The training will prioritize disease detection (including reporting of rumors) at the community level for priority zoonotic diseases (PZDs), including AI.

Mali:

• FAO ECTAD, in collaboration with USAID Mali, brought together more than 50 professionals from state veterinary services and their partners (officials from the national veterinary services, officials from the regional veterinary services, officials from veterinary laboratories, officials from the wildlife department, an official from the animal health support centre, a representative from the general directorate of health and public hygiene, representatives from training centres and institutes for livestock agents and technicians, and representatives of private veterinarians) at the annual epidemiological surveillance coordination meeting in Ségou from 14 to 16 May 2024. The objective was to present and discuss the main annual reports (surveillance, laboratory) in order to identify the main constraints and formulate recommendations to improve the functioning of the national animal and zoonotic disease surveillance system in Mali.
• FAO ECTAD Mali conducted a study on biosecurity in poultry, dairy and pig farms to assess best practices and recommend actions to improve biosecurity measures on farms. Following the recommendations from the study, a training session for 50 people was conducted in December 2023, and another is scheduled for July 2024 for community actors (women and youth) working in poultry, dairy, and pig farms.
• A training session for 25 community actors on case definition and notification of priority zoonotic diseases was held from 21 to 22 May 2024, in Ségou. The objective was to ensure their inclusion in the national animal and zoonotic disease surveillance system.
• A training session for 26 people (central, regional, and private veterinarians as well as laboratory officials and wildlife officers) was held in Bougouni from 28 to 30 May 2024, on Good Emergency Management Practices (GEMP). The objective of the training was to equip participants with the proper preparation and management of health emergencies.

Niger:

• An outbreak of highly pathogenic avian influenza (H5N1) was confirmed on 13 May 2024, by Laboratoire Central de l'Élevage (LABOCEL) following mortalities observed in a batch of 22 guinea fowls in Aguié in the Maradi region. The rest of the flock was culled after the disease was confirmed, which emerged following the introduction of new birds from a neighboring country. An order declaring the infection was issued on 15 May.
• Following a request from the Directorate General of Veterinary Services (DGSV), FAO-ECTAD supported an investigation mission conducted from 22 to 25 May 2024, composed of a central team and a regional OH team. The mission took place in four stages: i) visit to the outbreak site, ii) visit to a live poultry market (Gazaoua), iii) visit to the nearest border inspection post (Guidan Kané), and iv) synthesis and development of an enhanced avian influenza surveillance plan for the Maradi region. Disinfectants (virucide, quicklime, bleach), a backpack sprayer with a capacity of 16 liters, gloves, sampling equipment (EDTA tubes, dry tubes, containers) from a stock provided by FAO-ECTAD to the DGSV, and a surgical kit for necropsy were given to the Departmental Directorate of Livestock in Aguié to help manage potential new outbreaks.

Nigeria:

• FAO ECTAD in collaboration with the Federal Ministry of Agriculture and Food Security, is planning a national stakeholder workshop on control and prevention of HPAI, tentatively scheduled for July 2024.
• FAO ECTAD supported the development and validation of good practice guidelines for biosecurity in the poultry value chain.

Senegal:

• A suspicion of low pathogenic avian influenza (Low path) occurred in the Keur Massar Department on 30 May 2024. 155 cases and 75 mortalities were reported in a susceptible population of 3000 poultry. The suspicion has not yet been confirmed.

Sierra Leone:

• From 21 to 27 April 2024, FAO ECTAD, in collaboration with One Health Ministries (Ministry for Agriculture and Food Security, Ministry for Health and Ministry for Environment and Climate Change), universities, and supported by USAID under the GHS programme, has implemented active surveillance for avian influenza in Bonthe and Pujehun districts of Sierra Leone to safeguard public health and food security. These two districts are considered to be at high risk for HPAI because they lie along the route of migratory wild birds (the Eastern Atlantic migratory wild birds' flyway) from Asia through Europe to South Africa. From this activity, 114 sera samples were collected from chickens and wild birds, and both tested negative for H5, H7, and H9 on ELISA and hemagglutination inhibition.
• FAO ECTAD supported the Ministry of Agriculture and Food Security to develop guidelines for Infection Prevention and Appropriate Antimicrobial Use in the poultry sector. The guidelines will provide all poultry farmers - from small scale to large commercial - with routine biosecurity procedures to reduce occurrence and spread of infections on the farms and promote effective and safe use of drugs.

Somalia:

• FAO is implementing a pilot poultry value chain development project.

South Sudan:

• The FAO, through the Global Health Security Program, is planning to train 520 CAHWs on the disease reporting, community-based surveillance, to enhance their capacities in timely reporting and early warning system, detection of PZDs including poultry diseases especially in hard-to-reach areas. The training is scheduled for July 2024.
• In March 2024, FAO ECTAD through the GHS Programme conducted the assessment of Central Veterinary Laboratory (CVL) Juba using FAO Laboratory Mapping Tool (LMT)-core assessment and FAO LMT-safety assessment tools to assess the laboratory functionality, safety, and biosecurity aspects, and identify gaps and priorities for improvement. As a result of the assessment, short-term and mid-term recommendations were made to address the gaps and areas of improvement identified. FAO South Sudan is supporting CVL Juba to strengthen its functionality in testing PZDs such as HPAI.

Togo:

• FAO supports active surveillance missions in live poultry markets and organized training for 18 trainers on biosecurity measures and good breeding practices. Also, FAO trained 43 Village Livestock Assistants, including two women, on community surveillance to improve early warning for the detection and rapid response to diseases.

Zambia:

• Active surveillance was conducted in April 2024 to end May 2024. A total of 700 samples were collected from layer chickens (22-75 weeks) in 5 breeder farms from Copperbelt, Central, and Lusaka provinces. All samples tested negative for M, H5 and H7 genes by PCR at the Central Veterinary Research Institute (CVRI) in Lusaka.

Important links

• FAO-WOAH Global strategy for the prevention and control of high pathogenic avian influenza (2024–2033) - In brief
• FAO Global technical consultation on the strategic framework for early warning of animal health threats
• FAO-WHO-WOAH Joint FAO/WHO/WOAH preliminary assessment of recent influenza A(H5N1) viruses
• USDA Highly Pathogenic Avian Influenza (HPAI) Detections in Livestock
• WHO Avian Influenza A(H5N1) - United States of America
• WOAH High Pathogenicity Avian Influenza in Cattle
• FAO Stay vigilant with Highly Pathogenic Avian Influenza A(H5N1)
• CDC Technical Update: Summary Analysis of Genetic Sequences of Highly Pathogenic Avian Influenza A(H5N1) Viruses in Texas
• CDC How CDC is monitoring influenza data among people to better understand the current avian influenza A (H5N1) situation
• The list of wild bir and mammalian species which have been infected with H5Nx HPAI [link]
• Scientific Task Force on Avian Influenza and Wild Birds H5N1 High pathogenicity avian influenza in wild birds - Unprecedented conservation impacts and urgent needs
• EFSA Avian Influenza Overview December 2023 – March 2024
• EFSA Avian Influenza Overview reports [link]
• WHO Recommended composition of influenza virus vaccines for use in the 2024 southern hemisphere influenza season
• WHO Rapid risk assessment of risk associated with recent influenza A(H5N1) clade 2.3.4.4b viruses
  
• WHO Consultation on the Composition of Influenza Virus Vaccines related documents (from 2011 to date)
• WOAH Strategic challenges in the global control of high pathogenicity avian influenza [90SG/8]
• OFFLU The OFFLU website
• OFFLU HPAI Detections in Livestock page
• OFFLU Avian influenza matching (OFFLU-AIM) report
• OFFLU Avian data package for the VCM - February 2023 to September 2023
• OFFLU Summary reports of OFFLU contribution to WHO VCM (2013-2023)
• ECOWAS, FAO, USAID Report on the Regional Consultative Meeting on the Prevention and Control of Highly Pathogenic Avian Influenza (HPAI) in West Africa
  
• FAO-WHO-WOAH Tripartite Zoonotic Guide
• FAO-WHO-WOAH Tripartite Joint Risk Assessment (JRA) Operational Tool
• FAO-WHO-WOAH Ongoing avian influenza outbreaks in animals pose risk to humans - Situation analysis and advice to countries from FAO, WHO, WOAH
• FAO Report: Global consultation on highly pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI) 2-4 May 2023, Rome
• FAO Good emergency management practice - The essentials: A guide to preparing for animal health emergencies, the third edition 
• FAO Manual for the management of operations during an animal health emergency
• FAO Effective disposal of animal carcasses and contaminated materials on small to medium-sized farms
• FAO Veterinary laboratory testing protocols for priority zoonotic diseases in Africa
• FAO Guiding principles for the design of avian influenza active surveillance in Asia: Designing active, comprehensive, risk-based avian influenza surveillance
• FAO Webinar: Managing large-scale highly pathogenic avian influenza outbreaks in wild birds: part 1, part 2
• FAO Addressing H5N1 Highly Pathogenic Avian Influenza Qualitative risk assessment on spread in the Central African region Issue no. 4, including H5N8 HPAI in Uganda and the risk to neighbouring countries.
• Focus On: 2016–2018 Spread of H5N8 highly pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI) in sub-Saharan Africa
• Focus On: Highly Pathogenic H5 Avian Influenza in 2016 and 2017–Observations and future perspectives

Disclaimer

Information provided herein is current as of the date of issue. Information added or changed since the last Sub-Saharan HPAI situation update appears in orange. For poultry cases with unknown onset dates, reporting dates were used instead. FAO compiles information communicated by field officers on the ground in affected countries, from regional offices, and from the World Organisation for Animal Health [WOAH], as well as peer-reviewed scientific articles. FAO makes every effort to ensure, but does not guarantee, accuracy, completeness or authenticity of the information. The boundaries and names shown and the designations used on these map(s) do not imply the expression of any opinion whatsoever on the part of FAO concerning the legal status of any country, territory, city or area or of its authorities, or concerning the delimitation of its frontiers and boundaries. Dashed lines on maps represent approximate border lines for which there may not yet be full agreement.