One Health Europe–Africa Summit: Toward Safer and Sustainable Agri-Food Systems in Africa

In Africa, foodborne illnesses are responsible for around 30% of global deaths linked to contaminated food. Each year, unsafe food causes 137,000 deaths and 91 million cases of acute illness, with severe economic consequences: over 110 billion dollars a year in lost productivity and healthcare costs.

Tackling this issue is the increasingly urgent challenge addressed by NEXTAFRICA, a project coordinated by the University of Bologna and supported by the Seed Funding programme of the Una Europa Alliance. The initiative was launched to promote safer and more sustainable agri-food systems and to contribute to the fight against foodborne diseases in Africa.

From 11 to 27 June, the DIMEVET – Department of Veterinary Medical Sciences of the University of Bologna (Via Tolara di Sopra, 50, Ozzano) will host the One Health Europe–Africa Summit 2025, the final event of the project.

The event will provide an opportunity to share the scientific results achieved, foster dialogue among international partners, and launch new collaborations in the field of One Health.

A rich programme of workshops and research labs will animate the Summit. On Friday 27 June at 8:00 a.m., the international conference Veterinary Public Health and food safety challenges and strategies in Africa will take place, focusing on animal health, food safety, ecosystems and environmental impacts. Among the guest speakers will be Clovice Kankya, Director of the Department of Biosecurity, Ecosystems and Veterinary Public Health at Makerere University in Kampala (Uganda), the project’s African partner.

Aligned with the African Food Safety Strategy (FSSA 2022–2036) and with at least seven of the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals, NEXTAFRICA tackled the challenges related to food safety through research, innovation, training, and collaboration between researchers from Europe and Africa. The project adopts a multidisciplinary One Health approach, integrating human, animal, and environmental health.

NEXTAFRICA, launched in September 2024, was coordinated by Professor Alessandro Seguino of the Department of Veterinary Medical Sciences. In addition to the University of Bologna, the project involved Makerere University, University College Dublin/An Coláiste Ollscoile Baile Átha Cliath, Freie Universität Berlin, University of Edinburgh, Universidad Complutense de Madrid, and Helsingin Yliopisto/Helsingfors universitet.