The ministers responsible for animal health within the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) and their representatives, have reviewed and adopted three regional strategies: on the protection and conservation of donkeys by 2030; another on the prevention and control of foot-and-mouth disease in West Africa, 2027–2031, and the third on the prevention and control of avian influenza for the period 2027–2031.

This took place during their meeting held on Thursday 8^th of October 2026 in Lomé, Togo, on the sidelines of the 11^th annual meeting of the ECOWAS regional animal health networks on the theme “Strengthening the surveillance and control of transboundary animal diseases in the ECOWAS region”, which took place from the 6^th to 8^th of October 2026, also in the Togolese capital.

With regard to the strategy for the protection and conservation of donkeys by 2030, and in light of the growing threats to the species in West Africa, the ministers committed to four key actions, notably banning the trade in donkey skins by strengthening their national laws and cross-border cooperation between veterinary services, the police, customs, quarantine services and all other relevant authorities in their respective states.

They also decided to coordinate the project by entrusting the Regional Animal Health Centre (RAHC) with the implementation of the planned actions, monitoring and evaluation, reporting and fundraising, as well as to develop strong relationships with technical and financial partners to support the implementation of this strategy.

With regard to the strategy on the prevention and control of foot-and-mouth disease in West Africa, 2027–2031, the ministerial delegations reiterated the commitment of ECOWAS Member States to strengthen health measures by improving prevention, surveillance, biosecurity, diagnosis and vaccination against foot-and-mouth disease.

They recommended the designation of national focal points for foot-and-mouth disease, linked to the regional framework on this issue, as well as the harmonisation of national plans in line with the regional strategy and the phased approach to combating the disease.

Regional data sharing and cross-border cooperation on animal movements and risks, the mobilisation of national and Community resources as well as those of technical and financial partners to fund the strategy’s priorities, not to mention the overall coordination and monitoring of the strategy entrusted to the RAHC, also feature among the ministers’ resolutions.

With regard to the strategy on the prevention and control of avian influenza for the implementation period 2027–2031, the ministers and their representatives reaffirmed their states’ commitment to aligning their national mechanisms with regional guidelines and encouraged the mobilisation of internal and external financial resources for the implementation of the strategy.

Furthermore, they reaffirmed the RAHC’s role in steering, monitoring, evaluating and supporting ECOWAS Member States, and in ensuring regular monitoring with a mid-term review in 2028 and a final evaluation in 2031.

At the conclusion of the proceedings, the Chair of the ministerial meeting, the Deputy Minister for Livestock of Senegal – whose country currently holds the rotating presidency of ECOWAS – Maître Ousmane Diagne, expressed his gratitude to the participants for the value of their discussions.

He stated that the guidelines discussed mark a fundamental step towards strengthening animal health and welfare within the ECOWAS region.

Earlier, at the opening of the meeting, Tchin Daré, Deputy Minister attached to the Minister of Health of Togo, representing the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries, Animal Resources and Food Sovereignty and the Minister of Health, Public Hygiene, Universal Health Coverage and Insurance, as well as the Commissioner for Economic Affairs and Agriculture at the ECOWAS Commission, Dehpue Yenpea Zuo, emphasised the importance of the meeting.

In their view, the meeting underscores the collective commitment to animal protection, animal health, food and nutritional security, as well as the sustainable development of pastoral and agro-pastoral economies in the West African region.