THE CONTRIBUTION OF FARMING IN TSETSE CONTROLLED AREAS (FITICA) TO TSETSE AND TRYPANOSOMOSIS CONTROL IN UGANDA
CONTRIBUTION DU PROJECT FITCA A LA LUTTE CONTRE LES TSETSE ET LA TRYPANOSOMOSE EN OUGANDA
A. M. Gidudu1, S. Gould1, F. Luyimbazi2, J. Odimim2, A. Rutebuke 1, F.Akena3 & A.Kakembo3
1FITICA Project, P. O. Box 2, ENTEBBE, Uganda
2Ministry Of Agricultu Uganda, P. O. Box 102, ENTEBBE, Uganda
3Ministry Health, P. O. Box 7272, ENTEBBE, Uganda
Résumé
Dans le cadre des efforts déployés pour atteindre son objectif de contrôler durablement les trypanosomoses humaine et animale au Sud-Est de l’Ouganda, le projet FITCA a, pendant sa mise en œuvre, produit une série de données et d’informations sur les tsétsé, la maladie du sommeil, la prévalence du nagana et diverses enquêtes socio-économiques.
Sur la base des résultats des enquêtes, des zones à haut, moyen et faible risque de trypanosomose ont été identifiées et des activités de lutte intégrée y ont été exécutées en veillant à promouvoir des méthodes d’exploitation agricole appropriées. Les activités comprenaient entre autres : la pose de 27 278 pièges à tsétsé imprégnés de deltaméthrine ; le traitement prophylactique de 84 000 têtes de bovins ; la pulvérisation le long d’un couloir pour appliquer l’insecticide sur les bovins ; la création de 84 unités de stabulation permanente sous protection, l’exploitation des pâturages, l’utilisation de la traction animale et le débroussaillement sélectif pour dégager des terres cultivables.
A l’issue du projet, les résultats enregistrés sur 650 sites fixes de surveillance couvrant une superficie de 4 158 km² ont révélé que la réduction du nombre de mouches/piège/jour variait entre 75 % et 90 %. L’incidence de la maladie du sommeil dans la zone du projet FITCA a été réduite à moins de 5 acres/sous-comté/an. Le nombre total de cas de maladie du sommeil est en baisse constante depuis 2001, à l’instar de l’incidence de la maladie au niveau des sous-comtés.
Le taux de prévalence du nagana dans la zone du projet FITCA a baissé jusqu’à moins de 5% par district. Le nombre de districts ayant un taux de prévalence du nagana de plus de 5 % a été réduit de 8 à 5 et le taux global de prévalence pour tous les 12 districts est passé de 6,6% à 4,6 %.
Summary
As part of its effort to achieve the project purpose of sustainable control of human and animal trypanosomiasis in South Eastern Uganda, FITCA during its implementation, generated comprehensive sets of data and information from tsetse, sleeping sickness, nagana prevalence, and socio-economic surveys
Based on the results from the surveys, high, medium and low trypanosomiasis risk zones were established where integrated control activities were implemented in conjuction with promotion of appropriate farming practices. These included: deployment of 27278 deltamethrin impregnated tsetse traps, prophylactic treatment of 84,000 head of cattle, establishment of 341 crush spraying associations to apply insecticide on cattle, establishment of 84 protected zero grazing units, pasture development, use of animal traction and selected bush clearancg to open acres of land.
By the end of the project, 650 out of 800 fixed monitoring sites over an area of 4158 sq. km indicated a reduction in number of flies per trap per day by 75% - 90%. The number of sub-counties with more than 5 cases per month in the FITCA area, reduced from 20 to 11, five of which are from Sorot district. The number of districts with prevalence of nagana above 5% was reduced from eight to five, and the overall prevalence for all twelve districts was reduced form 6.6% to 4.6%.
1.0 The FITCA Concept
In order to enhance sustainability and as a follow up to the originally EEC funded tsetse and trypanosomiasis control project, the EU Commission agreed to fund a Farming in Tsetse Controlled Areas of Eastern Africa project as a regional programme in the section of rural development with tsetse & trypanosomiasis control as an entry point for improvement of livestock and agricultural production in 5 countries one of which was Uganda.
The FITCA concept embraced the integration of local communities, the public , private sectors and NGOS in the control process.
2.0. Methods and techniques
Local communities were supported to carry out tsetse and trypanosomiasis control using conventional measures, intergrated with appropriate farming practices which contribute to improvement of community welfare as well as to tsetse population reduction in 42 high risk sub-counties selected following baseline surveys.
Conventional measures involved the deployment of 27278 deltamethrin impregnated traps, treatment of 86,400 head of cattle with isometamidium, application of insecticide on livestock through livestock spraying associations, provision of support to the surveillance system in 12 districts and 18 sleeping sickness diagnostic and treatment centers under the ministry of Health and community sensitisation .
Appropriate farming practices, involving the use of insecticide treated nets for protection of 84 Zero grazing units, promotion of animal traction and pasture development/improvement were promoted in selected high risk sub-counties.
Monitoring of tsetse apparent densities and nagana prevalence was undertaken using 800 geo-referenced fixed monitoring sites (FMS) and a final nagana prevalence survey in 165 georeferenced sites in the project area respectively.
Sleeping sickness data was collected on a monthly basis by sleeping sickness assistants and district vector control officers.
Participatory impact assessments (PIAs) were also done to capture implementers’ and farmers’ perspectives of the impacts of the project.
3.0 Achievements of the Project
There were two objectively verifiable indicators (OVIs) to help measure the success or otherwise of achieving the project purpose. By the end of the project, the incidence of sleeping sickness in the FITCA project area is less than five cases per sub-county, per year and the prevalence of nagana in the FITCA project area is less than 5% per district. Table 1 summarises tsetse apparent density percentage reduction, the sleeping sickness incidence and nagana prevalence results over the life of the project in relation to the OVIs
Table 1. Tsetse reduction,Sleeping Sickness and Nagana Results as per Objectively Verifiable Indicators for FITCA Project
| District |
No. of S.Cs with >75% tsetse reduction |
No. of SCs with ≥ 5 Sleeping Sickness Cases per Year |
Nagana Prevalence |
|
|
2000 |
2001 |
2002 |
2003 |
2004 |
2001 |
2004 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
| Bugiri |
3/3 |
0 |
1 |
2 |
1 |
1 |
10.4% |
7.5% |
| Busia |
3/3 |
0 |
1 |
1 |
2 |
1 |
9.3% |
4.4% |
| Iganga |
6/7 |
4 |
4 |
6 |
4 |
1 |
10.4% |
6.2% |
| Jinja |
3/3 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
7.6% |
1.6% |
| Kamuli |
4/9 |
1 |
4 |
2 |
3 |
1 |
2.8% |
2.6% |
| Kayunga |
2/3 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
1.9% |
0.3% |
| Mayuge |
2/3 |
2 |
2 |
1 |
0 |
1 |
9.4% |
2.6% |
| Mbale |
2/2 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
7.1% |
6.5% |
| Mukono |
2/3 |
1 |
1 |
1 |
1 |
1 |
3.8% |
3.7% |
| Pallisa |
3/3 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
1.6% |
3.0% |
| Soroti |
- |
2 |
2 |
4 |
5 |
5 |
8.3% |
6.3% |
| Tororo |
3/3 |
0 |
4 |
3 |
0 |
0 |
8.2% |
9.4% |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
| TOTALS |
33/42 |
10 |
19 |
20 |
16 |
11 |
6.6% |
4.6% |
| No. of Districts with Nagana Prevalence >5% |
|
8 |
5 |
As the table demonstrates, the tsetse apparent densities, the incidence of sleeping sickness and the prevalence of nagana were significantly reduced and the situation in the area can be said to be stable and relatively under control.
3.0 Discussion
There is no doubt that the FITCA concept has the potential to ensure sustainability.The project supported central and local governments to institute more conventional control methods during implementation and promoted use of appropriate farming practices during the first phase. An extension of the project to validate the key practices has been made. The project emphasizes promotion of appropriate practices like protected zero grazing, animal traction pasture development, livebait technology through farmer spraying associations.Important lessons learnt technologies being promoted should be useed during implementation of the Pan African Tsetse and Trypanosomiasis Eradication Campaign PATTEC.
Special attention should be paid to the fact that in 2004 there were 125 cases of sleeping sickness reported from Soroti's neighbouring district, Kaberamaido with a view of increasing efforts by the central and local governments, considering the complexity of the disease and its endemic nature.
4.0 Acknowledgements
We wish to acknowledge the European Union for providing 5.6 million Euro for the project, the AU/IBAR for regional co-ordination and our collaborators from ILRI. |
