Research/Areas of Interest:
My past and present research interests are aligned with the focus of the Emerging Pandemic (EPT) Project.
Present interests: Pharmacovigilance (including veterinary) as a means for prevention, detection and response to antimicrobial resistance. The interest focus on the contribution of animal health sector to antimicrobial resistance in the context of Africa; game meat and edible insects value-chain analysis as related to infectious disease risks; prevention and response to public health events.
Past interest: Disease surveillance and outbreak response leveraging multisectoral collaboration (One Health) platforms
Education
- Doctor of Philosophy, University of Connecticut, USA, 2002
- Master of Science, University of Wyoming, USA, 1994
- Doctor of Vet Medicine, Universite de Lubumbashi, COD, 1982
Biography
Dr. Diafuka Saila-Ngita is Research Associate Professor at Tufts University. He is a trained veterinarian and holds a doctoral degree in resource economics with focus in health. He has more than three decades of international experience particularly in Africa spanning human, animal and wildlife sectors. He has worked in government, academia, NGOs and the private sector. He is currently the Co-Lead for surveillance, modeling and mapping on USAID STOP Spillover project. He was the Technical Advisor for Africa under USAID Emerging Pandemic Threats project (EPT). Under EPT, he was instrumental in building the Africa One Health University Network (AFROHUN) as well as One Health Platforms in Africa. He led the creation in DRC of the consortium of professional councils (Federation Une Santé- FUS) that includes the Medical Council, the Pharmacy Council, the Nursing Council and the Veterinary Council. Dr. Saila-Ngita initiated the creation of wildlife master's degree programs at Ecole Inter-Etats des Sciences et Médecine Vétérinaire of Dakar, Senegal and at Université de Lubumbashi, DRC. He helped review the University of Nairobi – Kenya wildlife program. Dr. Saila-Ngita has experience working at district and local government bringing together stakeholders to develop common vision which he helped apply in Kenya, DRC, Cameroon and Uganda under EPT. In 2004, he spearheaded the establishment of the first real-time health information system in Rwanda. He was the Head of the Livestock and wildlife office at the Ministry of Planning, DRC (1986-1990). He started his career as an outreach veterinarian supporting farmers at the Ministry of Agriculture, DRC in 1983. Dr. Saila-Ngita is fluent in English, French and African languages such Swahili, Lingala and Kikongo.