Report on the global arbovirus surveillance and response capacity survey 2021-2022

Overview

In 2021-2022 the World Health Organization (WHO) conducted a survey to assess current surveillance and response guidelines and practices across WHO Member States to identify critical areas that require strengthening. WHO gathered data from 167 countries and territories on the structure and coverage of their arbovirus surveillance systems, laboratory and entomological capacity, clinical management capacity, epidemic preparedness, access to expertise and staffing. The survey findings confirmed that preparedness and response system attributes and stages of development differ between countries, often reflecting surveillance and response measures developed in response to endemic or epidemic Aedes-borne arbovirus circulation. In many low-resourced settings, in particular, surveillance infrastructure is unlikely to detect transmission even though competent vectors are known to be present. In 2022 WHO launched the Global Arbovirus Initiative (GLAI) for Aedes-borne arboviral diseases to strengthen the coordination, communication, capacity-building, research, preparedness and response needed to mitigate the growing risk of epidemics due to arboviral diseases. The findings of the survey have informed the objectives and priority activities of the GLAI and will serve as a baseline against which progress can be measured.