Risks of zoonotic pandemics are increasing worldwide. In Kenya, zoonosis prevalence remains extremely high – and not only threatens human and animal life, but also poses a significant socio-economic burden. In light of the COVID-19 crisis, it is more evident than ever that preventing zoonoses is essential and for governments and other stakeholders to be able to efficiently act when the “disease X” does strike and trigger the next pandemic.

The ZoNoH project aims to strengthen the capacity of two Kenyan County One Health Units (COHU) so they can better manage zoonoses in their food system, hence contributing to prevent pandemics of tomorrow. The initiative will involve capacity building for One Health and Food Systems operationalisation, and tap into existing data (at global, national, and local levels) to assess the health and socio-economic impacts of zoonoses on local food systems. These approaches will ultimately lead to the co-creation of contextualised zoonoses prevention strategies for the two COHUs.

To realise ZoNoH, Transdisciplinary Consultants Limited (TCL) will partner with WUR. Additionally, we will tap into valuable resources from the Kenyan Zoonotic Disease Unit (ZDU, the government One Health office in Kenya), the Zoonotic and Emerging Diseases group, and the African Medical & Research Foundation (AMREF) – all of whom are committed to supporting the project’s implementation. The ZoNoH team will also continue securing donors and partners to further grow the initiative as it progresses.