ዶክፋን ፋርማ አካዳሚ

1. Definitions

• Emerging infectious disease: an infection that has newly appeared in a population, or has existed but is rapidly increasing in incidence or spreading to new places. Examples: HIV/AIDS, SARS, MERS, Ebola, Zika, COVID-19, mpox clade I.
• Re-emerging infectious disease: an infection that was once controlled and has come back or become a problem again. Examples: cholera, tuberculosis (including drug-resistant TB), measles, dengue, polio, malaria in highlands.
• Public health emergency: an event with a serious and often unexpected threat to health that needs an urgent response beyond routine capacity.

2. Driving forces

3. Emerging zoonotic diseases

About three out of four emerging infections come from animals. Spillover occurs when a pathogen passes from an animal reservoir to people, for example through hunting, butchering, contact with bats, consumption of raw milk or meat, or encroachment on forests. The main zoonoses of concern are Ebola and Marburg viruses (fruit bats), coronaviruses (SARS, MERS, SARS-CoV-2), avian and swine influenza, Nipah virus, Rift Valley fever, anthrax, brucellosis, rabies and mpox.

4. Vector-borne diseases

Vector-borne diseases are transmitted by mosquitoes, ticks, sandflies, tsetse flies and other arthropods. Malaria, dengue, chikungunya, yellow fever, leishmaniasis, lymphatic filariasis and trypanosomiasis are examples.

• Malaria: 282 million cases and 610,000 deaths in 2024, with Ethiopia a major contributor to the increase. Challenges: artemisinin partial resistance, the invasive urban vector Anopheles stephensi, insecticide resistance, conflict and funding gaps WHO malaria 2025.
• Dengue: spreads in cities with Aedes mosquitoes. Afar region held a high-level advocacy meeting on dengue prevention and response in 2026 UNICEF SitRep 2026.
• Control: integrated vector management (nets, indoor residual spraying, larval source management, environmental management, community engagement), early diagnosis and treatment, surveillance of vectors and resistance, vaccines where available.

5. Foodborne and waterborne diseases

WHO estimates that unsafe food causes about 600 million illnesses and 420,000 deaths each year (estimate published in 2015, still widely used), with children under five bearing a large share. Causes include bacteria (Salmonella, E. coli, Campylobacter, Listeria), viruses (hepatitis A, norovirus), parasites, chemicals (aflatoxin) and contaminated water (cholera, typhoid). WHO’s Five Keys to Safer Food are: keep clean; separate raw and cooked; cook thoroughly; keep food at safe temperatures; use safe water and raw materials. Control also needs food regulation, inspection and traceability (in Ethiopia the Ethiopian Food and Drug Authority and the Ministry of Agriculture), market hygiene, and sanitation. Cholera outbreaks recur in Oromia and other regions UNICEF SitRep 2026.

6. Bioterrorism threats

Bioterrorism is the deliberate release of viruses, bacteria or toxins to harm or intimidate. Agents of highest concern are anthrax, smallpox, plague, botulinum toxin, tularaemia and viral haemorrhagic fevers. The Biological Weapons Convention (in force since 1975) bans development and stockpiling of such weapons. The anthrax letters in the United States in 2001 showed that even a small attack can cause fear and strain the system. Preparedness uses the same capacities as for natural outbreaks: surveillance, laboratories, clinician awareness, stockpiles and plans, risk communication and legal powers, plus cooperation with security services and attention to the ethics of dual-use research.

7. Climate change and health

WHO has described climate change as the single biggest health threat facing humanity. Pathways include:

• Extreme heat: heat stroke, cardiovascular and kidney disease. GBD 2023 estimated that heat- and cold-related deaths increased by about 6 percent a year between 2013 and 2023 GBD 2023.
• Floods and storms: injuries, drowning, damage to facilities, cholera and other water-related disease.
• Drought and food insecurity: acute malnutrition, displacement. In 2026, UNICEF-supported centres in Ethiopia admitted 328,422 children for severe acute malnutrition in six months UNICEF SitRep 2026.
• Changing vector ranges: malaria and dengue move into new highland and urban areas.
• Air pollution and mental health: fires, dust, household smoke; anxiety and trauma after disasters.
• Health systems: disrupted services and supply chains.

WHO reported in 2025 that nearly 60 percent of new health emergencies in the previous year were climate-related, and the 2025 World Health Assembly set a target to halve the health effects of air pollution by 2040 WHA78 2025. Responses combine mitigation (cutting emissions, clean household energy, active transport; with large health co-benefits) and adaptation (climate-resilient health facilities, early warning, surveillance and community preparedness).

8. Emergency preparedness and control

A useful benchmark is the 7-1-7 target: detect a suspected outbreak within 7 days of emergence, notify public health authorities within 1 day, and complete the early response actions within 7 days. The amended IHR and the Pandemic Agreement stress strong national capacity, including a National IHR Authority WHO IHR 2025. Vaccine-preventable outbreaks, such as measles, are also a sign of weak immunisation: in 2025, 57 countries reported large or disruptive measles outbreaks WUENIC 2025.