In November 2014, USAID launched their Emerging Pandemic Threats program 2 (EPT-2).
EPT-2 is focused on mitigating the impact of novel “high consequence pathogens” that originate in animals with a goal of enabling early detection of new disease threats, effectively controlling those threats, enhancing national-level preparedness in advance of outbreaks, and ultimately reducing the risk of these diseases emerging by minimizing human behaviors and practices that trigger the “spill over and spread” of new pathogens. [1]
EPT-2 has three overarching purposes:
- the prevention of new zoonotic disease emergence,
- the early detection of new threats when they do emerge,and
- their timely and effective response
EPT2 consists of a suite of One Health Investments, PREDICT 2, One Health Workforce, and the Preparedness & Response, that contribute to each of these goals and are complemented by strategic investments in key partners including the CDC, U.N. Food and Agriculture Organization, and the World Health Organization.
“PREDICT, a project of USAID’s Emerging Pandemic Threats (EPT) program, was initiated in 2009 to strengthen global capacity for detection and discovery of zoonotic viruses with pandemic potential. …PREDICT is continuing to build platforms for disease surveillance and for identifying and monitoring pathogens that can be shared between animals and people. Using the One Health approach, the project is investigating the behaviors, practices, and ecological and biological factors driving disease emergence, transmission, and spread. Through these efforts, PREDICT will improve global disease recognition and begin to develop strategies and policy recommendations to minimize pandemic risk.”
:PREDICT 2 is continuing efforts to shift the prevention and surveillance paradigm towards identification and mitigation of viral spillover and amplification risk.”
Implementing partners for PREDICT-2 are University of California-Davis, EcoHealth Alliance, Metabiota, Smithsonian Institution, and Wildlife Conservation Society.