2025 Review: Strengthening One Health with Sustainable Vaccines
The Growing Importance of One Health in Global Health Security
In a world increasingly shaped by climate change, the emergence of zoonotic diseases, supply chain disruptions, and persistent global health inequities, the One Health approach has transitioned from an abstract concept to a critical necessity. The lessons learned from the COVID-19 pandemic, as well as recurring outbreaks such as Ebola, mpox, avian influenza, and antimicrobial resistance, have made it clear that human health is deeply intertwined with animal health and environmental conditions. This interconnectedness is particularly evident in the systems required for safely storing, transporting, and deploying vaccines, diagnostics, and biological materials.
Cold-chain infrastructure remains one of the most overlooked yet essential components of global health security. According to the World Health Organization, nearly half of all vaccines are wasted annually due to temperature control failures. In low- and middle-income countries, especially across Africa, unreliable electricity, fragmented logistics, and limited technical capacity compound these challenges. As climate volatility increases, so does the need for sustainable and resilient cooling solutions—no longer optional but foundational to public health preparedness and pandemic prevention.
2025: A Pivotal Year for One Health in Africa
2025 marked a significant milestone in advancing the One Health approach through sustainable cold-chain systems, particularly within Africa’s rapidly evolving health and research landscape. One Health is an integrated strategy aimed at optimising the health of people, animals, and ecosystems. It requires collaboration across sectors and disciplines to address complex, interdependent challenges, including the development of sustainable cold-chains.
The Clean Cooling Network focused on several key activities in 2025, including the roll-out of training programs, strengthening its position in the global health community, and deepening collaboration among human health, veterinary, and policymaking professionals. These efforts align closely with global policy frameworks such as the Quadripartite One Health Joint Plan of Action, led by WHO, FAO, WOAH, and UNEP.
For Africa, where over 60% of emerging infectious diseases are zoonotic in origin, operationalising One Health is not a distant goal but an immediate priority. Effective cold-chain systems play a crucial role in immunisation campaigns, veterinary disease control, laboratory surveillance, and food safety, while also minimising environmental impact.
Expanding Capacity Through Training and Collaboration
The “Cold-Chain for Global Health (CCGH)” course was launched in 2025, equipping trainees with practical, systems-level skills to manage cold-chain challenges across human and animal health settings. Over three cohorts, the program graduated 49 professionals from diverse backgrounds, including public health, veterinary services, laboratory systems, immunisation programmes, and research institutions. The course attracted an average of 300 applicants per offering, reflecting growing demand for applied One Health cold-chain training across Rwanda and Africa.
This demand highlights a broader shift in African health systems towards capacity-building that prioritises implementation rather than just policy. Investments in vaccines, diagnostics, and surveillance yield limited returns without parallel investments in cold-chain expertise. By targeting professionals already embedded within national systems, the CCGH course bridges the gap between technical knowledge and operational reality.
The course’s systems-level approach reflects a growing understanding that cold-chains are not merely technical installations but living infrastructures shaped by governance, financing, workforce capacity, and environmental constraints. In a region where energy efficiency and climate resilience are inseparable from health outcomes, training that integrates sustainability into cold-chain design is especially critical.
Strengthening Networks and Fostering Collaboration
Beyond training, 2025 saw the Clean Cooling Network further establish itself as a convener of regional and international stakeholders. The second annual One Health Vaccine Symposium brought together over 200 participants from Rwanda, Africa, and the UK. Held at the Africa Centre for Sustainable Cooling and Cold-Chain (ACES) in Kigali, the event focused on translating research into implementation, providing a platform for dialogue on vaccine development, cold-chain resilience, and pandemic preparedness.
The symposium reinforced the importance of integrated approaches to vaccine delivery and biosecurity. In a global context where vaccine nationalism and fragmented supply chains continue to undermine equity, such gatherings play a vital role in fostering trust, shared learning, and south-south and north-south collaboration. Hosting the event in Kigali symbolised Africa's role as a co-creator of solutions tailored to its unique realities.
Looking Ahead: 2026 and Beyond
As we look ahead to 2026, the focus will be on expanding One Health-oriented training, increasing regional reach, and deepening practical engagement with national programmes. Priorities include scaling the CCGH course, enhancing the value of alumni networks, and more directly linking training outcomes to implementation in immunisation, surveillance, and outbreak preparedness.
Simultaneously, efforts will be made to strengthen food systems, health systems, and diagnostics infrastructure. Cold-chain systems will be positioned as a core component of One Health resilience, supporting vaccines, diagnostics, and biological samples across human, animal, and environmental health domains. These systems are essential to achieving the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).
The stakes are higher than ever. As Africa prepares for increased local vaccine manufacturing, expanded genomic surveillance, and growing cross-border trade in biological products, the need for sustainable, interoperable cold-chain systems will only intensify. Cold-chains must be recognised not as ancillary logistics but as strategic infrastructure underpinning health security, economic resilience, and climate adaptation.
By anchoring cold-chain innovation within the One Health framework and investing in people as much as in technology, the groundwork is being laid for systems that are not only functional but also future-ready. In doing so, Africa can help shape a global model of health resilience—one that is collaborative, sustainable, and grounded in shared responsibility for the health of people, animals, and the planet.
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