Commentary
Mobile laboratories for Sars-CoV-2 diagnostics: what Europe could learn from the East African Community to assure trade in times of border closures
Bibliographic Data
| ID | 19534583 |
|---|---|
| Authors | Florian Gehre (0000-0001-6359-2128, East, Central and Southern Africa Health Community, corresponding author), Hakim Idris Lagu (East, Central and Southern Africa Health Community), Hakim Lagu, Emmanuel Achol (East, Central and Southern Africa Health Community), Michael Katende (East, Central and Southern Africa Health Community), Jürgen May (0000-0002-3252-6336), Juergen May (0000-0001-7831-8420, Universität Hamburg), Muna Affara (0000-0001-6102-8160, East, Central and Southern Africa Health Community) |
| Year | 2021 |
| Volume | 17 |
| Issue | 1 |
| Pages | 49-49 |
| Publication date | 2021-12-01 |
| Peer Reviewed | Yes |
| Open Access | Yes |
| Type | ARTICLE |
| Venue | Globalization and Health (JOURNAL) |
| Journal identifiers | ISSN: 1744-8603 • E-ISSN: 1744-8603 |
| Publisher | Springer Science and Business Media LLC (PUBLISHER) |
| DOI | 10.1186/s12992-021-00700-9 |
| PMID | 33892773 |
| OpenAlex | W3154804389 |
| Language | EN |
| Citations received | 2 |
| References cited | 1 |
BACKGROUND: The emergence of SARS-CoV-2 mutants might lead to European border closures, which impact on trade and result in serious economic losses. In April 2020, similar border closures were observed during the first SARS-CoV-2 wave in East Africa. MAIN BODY: Since 2017 the East African Community EAC together with the Bernhard-Nocht-Institute for Tropical Medicine BNITM established a mobile laboratory network integrated into the National Public Health Laboratories of the six Partner States for molecular diagnosis of viral haemorrhagic fevers and SARS-CoV-2. Since May 2020, the National Public Health Laboratories of Kenya, Rwanda, Burundi, Uganda and South Sudan deployed these mobile laboratories to their respective borders, issuing a newly developed "Electronic EAC COVID-19 Digital Certificate" to SARS-CoV-2 PCR-negative truck drivers, thus assuring regional trade. CONCLUSION: Considering the large financial damages of border closures, such a mobile laboratory network as demonstrated in East Africa is cost-effective, easy to implement and feasible. The East African Community mobile laboratory network could serve as a blueprint for Europe and other countries around the globe
Blueprint · Business · Economic growth · Economics · International trade · License · Political science · Public health · Engineering · Medicine · SARS-CoV-2 and COVID-19 Research · SARS-CoV-2 detection and testing · Viral Infections and Outbreaks Research
Impacts, mitigation strategies of Covid-19 on human well-being in Africa
The East African Community’s mobile laboratory network’s rapid response during the first 2 weeks of the Ebola Sudan virus disease (SVD) outbreak in Uganda and pandemic preparedness activities in South Sudan, Rwanda, Tanzania, Burundi, Kenya
| Unique citing works | 2 |
|---|---|
| Citations per year | 0,5 |
| Citation span | 2022 - 2023 (2) |
| Citation velocity | historical |
| Highly cited | No |
| Citation types | Neutral: 2 |