Small ruminants, Big impact: A student-led vaccination programme in Uganda
Francesca, Rudi and Shreya are final year veterinary students at the University of Cambridge, and the recipients of the inaugural Worldwide Veterinary Service (WVS) Global Challenge Award, announced at BVA Live 2026. The WVS provides free expert care to animals in need by sending vets where they are needed most, training them to increase the standard of care globally and by shipping urgent aid supplies worldwide. Their Global Challenge, in partnership with the BVA, asked students to submit a proposal addressing an underappreciated welfare issue in any species around the world. The team designed a self-sustaining vaccination program for Peste des Petits Ruminants (PPR), colloquially known as goat plague, in smallholder communities in Isingiro, Uganda. Having worked on their winning proposal for over 6 months, the students are now working alongside the WVS to implement this project in collaboration with Uganda’s Ministry for Agriculture, Animal Industries and Fisheries (MAAIF), Makerere University, and other key stakeholders.
This talk will explore their innovative proposal as well as what working to pull off a bold international veterinary project actually involves.
- Exploring nuances and sustainability of NGO involvement in public health campaigns.
- Improve awareness of PPR as an underrecognised Veterinary Public Health risk.
- Highlighting the importance of championing youth involvement in a meaningful way.
- Encouraging students to take part in the WVS Global Challenge.
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