Environmental Protection Agency Participates in ECOWAS Exchange And Experience Sharing Workshop
Mohamed Aruna The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) of Sierra Leone participated in a crucial workshop on the growing threat of Highly Pathogenic Avian Influenza (HPAI) in the ECOWAS region.
Mary Sia Foyah, the agency’s senior public relations officer, represented Sierra Leone at the event held in Abidjan, Ivory Coast.
The workshop focused on a “One Health” approach, recognizing that HPAI is a zoonotic virus, meaning it can jump between animals and humans. While the virus primarily affects wild birds and poultry, with varying degrees of severity, scientists are increasingly concerned about its potential to infect humans.
HPAI H5N1, a specific strain, has become a significant threat since 2000. It poses risks to poultry industries, livelihoods, international trade, and wild bird populations. More importantly, the recent rise in H5N1 cases among mammals, which are closer to humans biologically than birds, raises serious concerns about the virus’s potential to adapt and spread more easily among people.
The workshop, co-organized by the West African Health Organisation (WAHO), the Food and Agricultural Organisation (FAO), and the ECOWAS Regional Animal Health Centre (RAHC), highlighted the urgency of the situation. Presentations underscored the need to review and update current regional and national measures to effectively combat the growing threat of avian influenza.