activities of Reference Laboratories & Collaborating Centres:OIE twinning: successful technical cooperation between Italy and Botswana

摘要

In 2006, in an effort to assist laboratories in developing and in-transition countries to address weaknesses in their systems, the OIE introduced the concept of twinning. The main objective of the twinning programme is to assist these laboratories to develop their technical capacity and scienti?c expertise with the ultimate goal – for some – of becoming Reference Centres in their own right. This paper describes how the concept of twinning was applied to build diagnostic capacity for contagious bovine pleuropneumonia in Botswana. Contagious bovine pleuropneumonia is an animal disease enzootic in sub-Saharan Africa. As a result of its highly infectious nature – with a high mortality rate in cattle – it causes signi?cant production losses and represents one of the main impediments to the growth of the livestock industry on the African continent. This paper illustrates how the relationship between the Istituto Zoopro?lattico Sperimentale dell’Abruzzo e del Molise and Botswana National Veterinary Laboratory resulted in the establishment of an OIE Reference Laboratory for contagious bovine pleuropneumonia in Botswana. The laboratory serves mainlythe Southern African Development Community to help in controlling the disease in areas where it is enzootic.