Since our founding in 1999, Vets Without Borders Ireland has raised and donated over €1 million and supported thousands of people through impactful veterinary and animal health projects in countries including Kosovo, Albania, Serbia, Romania, Uganda, Tanzania, Malawi, Zimbabwe, Pakistan, and Nepal—and the positive effects are still felt today. To everyone who has cycled, hiked, played golf, or generously donated: thank you. Your support has made a real difference and is an incredible achievement for dedicated community.
Past Project: Livestock Health in Karamoja, Uganda In partnership with VSF Belgium (2017–2022)
Through our collaboration with VSF Belgium and the VSF International network, Vets Without Borders Ireland co-funded a major livestock health initiative in the Karamoja region of north-east Uganda. Over five years, we contributed €100,000 to support improved animal health services for agro-pastoralist communities.
Why Karamoja?
Karamoja is one of Uganda’s poorest regions, long affected by chronic conflict. Since 2006, peace has brought new opportunities for development. However, livestock farmers still face challenges such as low productivity and high disease rates in cattle and goats.
Our Impact
Community Animal Health Workers (CAHWs): With few veterinary services available, CAHWs were trained to provide basic veterinary care and animal husbandry advice.
Over 24,000 farmers reached in the first year
9 CAHW associations were formed, each with a small outlet for veterinary supplies
Ongoing training in business skills, record-keeping, and veterinary care
Cold chain support (e.g. solar-powered fridges for vaccines) and motorbikes to reach remote communities
Vaccination Campaigns:
Linking CAHWs to farmer groups improved access to vaccinations and deworming services.
Over 10,000 goats vaccinated against Contagious Caprine Pleuropneumonia (CCPP) after an outbreak
Over 25,000 cattle vaccinated against Contagious Bovine Pleuropneumonia (CBPP) in collaboration with local authorities
CAHWs also supported by the government in large-scale disease prevention campaigns
This project helped lay the groundwork for sustainable veterinary services in a remote and underserved region, improving both animal health and farmer livelihoods.
Past Project: Brucellosis Surveillance in Malawi
In recent years, Vets Without Borders Ireland has partnered with the Shire Highlands Milk Producing Association (SHMPA) in Southern Malawi to investigate brucellosis—a zoonotic disease (transmissible from animals to humans) often overlooked in both cattle and people in the region, but which has a widespread impact on public health. This project is ongoing and continues with regular monitoring, blood sampling and training administered by SHMPA.
Why Brucellosis? Brucellosis can significantly impact both animal health and human wellbeing. In sub-Saharan Africa, it's often misdiagnosed or underreported in humans, while poor reproductive performance in cattle is rarely investigated.
Findings Our initial surveillance revealed a 22% prevalence of Brucella spp. in dairy cows sampled. Alarmingly, among 400+ farmers surveyed, none had heard of brucellosis, its symptoms, or how it spreads. Even more concerning, 35% of farmers reported consuming raw milk which dramatically increased the risk of transmission to humans.
SHMPA supplies 95% of the milk consumed in Blantyre—a city of over one million people—therefore understanding and controlling this disease is vital for public health.
Our Approach
Education We mobilized teams comprising SHMPA project officers, veterinary staff, and local farmers to raise awareness about brucellosis. These teams also engaged local health centres to strengthen disease reporting between animal and human health services.
Vaccination Due to limited resources, culling infected animals isn’t feasible. Instead, a vaccination strategy was developed. This began with widespread screening of the SHMPA herd to identify infection status before rolling out the vaccine to unaffected animals.
Monitoring The project continues with regular monitoring and blood sampling to track infection rates and deliver vaccine boosters. Training seminars focus on:
Safe animal introductions to herds
Immunization practices
Recognizing brucellosis symptoms
For information about all of our projects click here to view our newletters
