The RVC has been working with Imperial College, Google. VetAid Kenya and the FAO on using mobile phones for disease surveillance in East Africa. Using an open source application, EpiCollect, developed by Imperial College we have been able to accurately map where and when animals have been treated or vaccinated in the most remote areas. This allows accurate monitoring of the coverage of vaccination campaigns and helps in predicting future disease risks.
The current terrible drought in East Africa has not only affected millions of people but it has decimated livestock herds on which the pastoralists depend. In the face of this crisis, VetAid a small Kenyan veterinary NGO, has started to use mobiles in the field as part of their emergency response. This allows them to feed back to the coordinating centre what is happening in the field - this is important information for governments and donor agencies too. Significantly it is also possible for the general public and individual donors to log onto a Google map and see exactly where there funding is being used.
This exciting development is now being assisted by Google Kenya who yesterday offered logistical and training support for the deployment of the application and assistance with visualising data. Google.org have also been helping by encouraging Google staff to donate their old Android handsets which are then donated to vets in Kenya working in the field.
So perhaps something good can come out of all the current suffering in East Africa which will help future generations better prepare and respond to disasters.
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