Since its emergence in Europe in 2018, peste des petits ruminants (PPR) has spread to countries including Albania, Bulgaria, Georgia, Greece, Hungary, Kosovo, and Romania, representing the first known incursions in several of these nations. As a notifiable disease listed by the World Organisation for Animal Health (WOAH), PPR carries high mortality rates and significant trade implications, posing serious threats to food security, rural livelihoods, and national economies.
Recent epidemiological developments and regional eradication efforts were discussed at the PPR Roadmap Meeting in Tajikistan in November 2025. Eran Raizman, Senior Animal Health and Production Officer at the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), highlighted that awareness-raising publications and training initiatives are critical for enhancing countries’ preparedness and response capacities. FAO and WOAH launched the Global PPR Control and Eradication Strategy in 2015, setting an ambitious goal of eradicating PPR worldwide by 2030.
In response to the growing threat, FAO developed a new regional online training initiative for European countries, aimed at strengthening the capacities of animal health professionals in both affected and high-risk regions. Delivered through the FAO Virtual Learning Centers (VLC), the course engaged over 330 participants from more than 30 European countries over a four-week programme. Participants completed seven interactive modules covering clinical recognition, sample collection, field diagnostics, outbreak investigation, transmission dynamics, risk factors, surveillance strategies, and principles of control and eradication. The course content was developed by PPR expert Paula Menzies from the University of Guelph, Canada.
The training also featured complementary webinars with insights from experts such as Arnaud Bataille from CIRAD and national authorities from Albania, Greece, and Romania, who shared experiences from recent outbreaks and genetic analyses of the virus. The programme concluded with a session on the PPR episystem, control strategies, and the WOAH procedures for achieving official PPR-free status, presented by Sara Lysholm from WOAH’s Status Department.
The course received accreditation from Veterinary Continuing Education in Europe (VetCEE), allowing participating veterinarians to earn European Credit Transfer and Accumulation System (ECTS) credits toward their professional development. To further expand reach, FAO plans to adapt the course into Russian, targeting additional countries across Europe and Central Asia.
