It is extraordinary when a disease is eradicated from the face of the earth, as great a human accomplishment as inventing the internet or putting a man on the moon.

Two serious ones have already been wiped out — smallpox, a scourge of human history, and rinderpest, a chronic killer of cattle and instigator of famine.

The disease we propose be made the third target for elimination is often deadly to sheep and goats but also devastating to the livelihoods of hundreds of millions of smallholder farmers who rely on them for meat, milk and other products. Called by its French name peste des petits ruminants (PPR), which means small ruminant plague, the disease can wipe out entire unvaccinated flocks in a matter of days.

PPR is an ideal candidate for total eradication as there is only one virus strain for which an effective vaccine exists. That is why the organisations we lead are jointly launching and leading a 15-year campaign to eradicate the disease, involving regions and countries. By 2030 the world should be free of PPR.

Why target PPR? Since it was first identified in 1942 in Cote d’Ivoire, the disease has spread throughout Africa, West Asia, Central and South Asia and most recently has swept across China. As a result today PPR is present in more than 70 countries. If no action is taken , the disease is expected to spread further into southern Africa, Southeast Asia, and Mongolia. Most countries in the Mediterranean basin are also at risk.

PPR does not affect human health directly, but it seriously jeopardises the livelihoods of millions of poor smallholders. When their flocks die, farmers and their families in rural areas are pushed deeper into poverty, increasing their levels of malnutrition.

Eradicating the rinderpest plague in cattle showed that with political will, economic commitment and the full involvement of veterinary services including practitioners, local shepherds, pastoralists, and farmers, countries can eradicate a disease completely.

Better veterinary care One key component of the strategy is the strengthening of veterinary systems; they contribute directly to human health and food safety, the protection of such threats from animals such as rabies, brucellosis, Ebola, or antimicrobial resistant organisms that may have environmental or animal origin. Consumer confidence relies on the veterinary systems of regulatory inspection and assurances of compliance.

There are around 500 million family farmers in developing countries and a high percentage of them depends on small ruminants for food such as meat, milk and other products for income generation. Eradication makes economic sense as it will permanently eliminate the negative socio-economic impacts of the disease and result in estimated savings of almost $2 billion a year. This means the entire investment in this initiative is expected to be recovered within a few years following PPR eradication.

Sheep and goats are famously hardy and can survive dry and rocky environments in which cattle or other livestock would perish. They are less expensive than cattle and have a higher reproduction rate. Women and children make up the majority of those caring for and raising small ruminants.

Many people would benefit by the end of PPR: farmers and pastoralists, traders, retailers, transporters and those who slaughter animals, dress carcasses and cure skins, retailers. Consumers would benefit, too, both in terms of access to food and nutrition.

The global campaign to eradicate PPR will be launched officially at a conference from March 31 to April 2 in Abidjan, jointly organised by FAO and OIE with the government of the Republic of Côte d’Ivoire.

Ministers and other country representatives will be there from affected and at-risk countries, as well as donor agencies, the private sector, civil society, and scientists, stating their political support for the control and eradication of PPR and the improvement of small ruminant health worldwide, as well as their recognition of the key role to be played by the national veterinary systems.

That’s quite an army. If we can all march in the same direction by 2030 we can put another devastating animal disease to rest and benefit hundreds of millions of people. Isn’t that worth the effort?

Da Silva is director-general of the FAO, Vallat is director-general of the World Organisation for Animal Health

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