ERFAN

ERFAN, acronym of Enhancing Research for Africa Network, is a scientific Network of African and Italian Veterinary Institutions providing a common framework to ensure joint response to global challenges in the areas of animal/human health, food hygiene and environment protection. ERFAN is financed by the Italian Republic and supported by the World Organisation for Animal Health, and constitutes a valuable platform to build up a fruitful collaboration between the African countries and Italian Institutions towards the achievement of Development Sustainable Goals. It seeks to serve as an incubator and accelerator to connect projects at regional level, connecting individuals, resources, expertise, knowledge, technologies and opportunities in economic terms.

ERFAN II was officially launched on 28 January 2026 with the aim of building on and consolidating the achievements of the project’s first phase, which established a strong cooperation network between Italian and African institutions in the fields of veterinary and public health. Over the next three years, the project will help strengthen veterinary services and diagnostic laboratories in member countries through training, research, technological innovation and capacity building. Its overall objective is to improve the prevention, diagnosis and surveillance of animal and zoonotic diseases in line with the principles of the One Health approach.

EUFMD

In response to the virus’s expanding reach and the increasing number of regions with suitable conditions for Rift Valley Fever virus transmission, FAO, through the European Commission for the Control of Foot and Mouth Disease (EuFMD, has launched a proactive initiative in collaboration with the RVF European Union Reference Laboratory, (RVF EURL) and the Training Department of Istituto Zooprofilattico Sperimentale dell’Abruzzo e del Molise “G. Caporale” (IZS Teramo). This program aims to prepare neighboring countries and several European nations for potential outbreaks by enhancing laboratory capacity for disease identification and the early detection of virus circulation. The primary objectives are to strengthen emergency preparedness, enable rapid response, and eventually improve control measures for RVF. The project was structured around four main Objectives and seven Activities designed to enhance both the diagnostic capabilities and operational readiness of participating laboratories. A central component was the implementation of a Proficiency Test (PT), aimed at evaluating each laboratory’s ability to rapidly and accurately detect antibodies and viral RNA in samples from animals exposed to RVF virus. In parallel, a targeted training programme was planned to address any technical or operational gaps identified through the PT results. The courses provided in-depth instruction on diagnostic methods for detecting RVFV in blood and serum samples, as well as on the safe handling of high-risk pathogens in BSL-3 laboratory environments. An innovative aspect of this training was the successful implementation of a Virtual Reality module, a novel methodology developed by the EURL and IZS Teramo’s training and communication team. The VR component offered immersive simulations to reinforce biosafety principles and laboratory workflows within a risk-free environment, thereby enhancing familiarity with high-containment laboratory settings. Beyond capacity building, the project fostered the establishment of a collaborative network among participating laboratories, with the longer-term goal of extending cooperation to relevant national authorities. This network aims to facilitate the timely exchange of data and information, thereby strengthening collective understanding of virus circulation patterns and epidemiological dynamics.

PROVNA

PROVNA — “Defining Ecoregions and Prototyping on EO-based Vector-borne Disease Surveillance System for North Africa” — is a WOAH project, implemented by IZS Teramo.
Its Phase I, funded by BMZ, ended in July 2024 (results presented on 2 July 2024 in Lisbon, in a dedicated workshop within the framework of the 28th JPC REMESA meeting) and identified, through the processing of Earth-observation data, the main ecoregions in North Africa relevant to the transmission of vector-borne diseases. All six North African countries — Algeria, Egypt, Libya, Mauritania, Morocco and Tunisia — took part.
Phase II, funded by USDA APHIS, aimed to establish a risk-based surveillance system for mosquito-borne diseases (MBDs) across North Africa using the ecoregionalisation approach developed in Phase I. It was delivered through five work packages and, alongside several online bilateral meetings, included a launching workshop, four webinars (use of satellite data; entomology and the use of mosquito traps; Whole Genome Sequencing; and the new PROVNA platform), and three in-person trainings (two rounds of laboratory-capacity training on Virology and Entomology in November 2025, and a GIS/Epidemiology training in February 2026).
The project has since expanded through PROVBAC (2025), extending the ecoregionalisation approach to Western Europe, the Balkans and the Caucasus, in addition to North Africa.