Conference Abstract | Volume 8, Abstract ELIC202559 (Poster 085) | Published: 06 Aug 2025
Ousman Ceesay1,&, Lenka Korner2, Sainabou Bojang3
1Ministry of Health, The Gambia, 2Robert Koch Institute, Berlin, Germany, 3Medical Research Council, The Gambia
&Corresponding author: Ousman Ceesay, Public Health Services, Ministry of Health, Banjul, The Gambia. Email: ceesay1992@gmail.com
Received: 14 Jun 2025, Accepted: 09 Jul 2025, Published: 06 Aug 2025
Domain: Infectious Disease Epidemiology
Keywords: Genomic surveillance, pathogen genomics, public health systems, capacity building, data sharing, one health
©Ousman Ceesay et al. Journal of Interventional Epidemiology and Public Health (ISSN: 2664-2824). This is an Open Access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution International 4.0 License (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/), which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.
Cite this article: Ousman Ceesay et al., Challenges and opportunities in operationalising genomic surveillance in the Gambia public health system. Journal of Interventional Epidemiology and Public Health. 2025;8(ConfProc5):00229. https://doi.org/10.37432/JIEPH-CONFPRO5-00229
The COVID-19 pandemic highlighted the global value of integrating pathogen genomic data into disease surveillance. However, country-level implementation varies widely. This study explored the opportunities and challenges of operationalising integrated genomic surveillance (IGS) in The Gambia. The aim was to understand the public health relevance of IGS and identify key barriers and enablers for implementation in the Gambia.
We used a qualitative study design. Data sources included a literature review, semi-structured interviews, and focus group discussions. Participants were stakeholders from One Health sectors, including ministries, national public health laboratory, teaching hospital, research, and international agencies. Ethical clearance and informed consent were obtained.
Key barriers included limited funding, lack of skilled workforce, weak legislative frameworks, and governance gaps. Enablers identified were political commitment, trust in data sharing, intersectoral collaboration, and the existence of basic lab infrastructure. Opportunities exist to strengthen IGS through regional collaboration, building on Africa CDC initiatives and existing surveillance systems
The Gambia shares common challenges with peer countries in operationalising IGS, particularly in capacity building and governance. Political support, regional networking, and trust-based data sharing are critical for success. The Robert Koch Institute and WHO Hub will continue supporting countries through baseline capacity assessments and technical tools from International Pathogen Surveillance Network (IPSN) to advance genomic surveillance integration in public health.
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