VetCare

VetCare establishes hyperlocal farmer field schools using livestock disease surveillance data to identify areas overusing antibiotics. Local veterinary experts then develop standardized health protocols demonstrated to farmers to optimize husbandry techniques like nutrition and biosecurity as alternatives to antibiotics, verified through remote health monitoring and SMS reminders.

Medrine Bayo, Operations Officer for VetCare Solutions, will serve as Team Lead for this solution.

In Tanzania, overprescription and misuse of antibiotics on small-scale dairy farms is a significant contributor to the rise of antimicrobial resistance (AMR). Based on government data, at least 60% of the country's 10 million cattle are raised on small farms of 2-10 milk cows. Veterinary reports indicate these farmers overuse antibiotics by an average of 30% more than recommended to prevent diseases, treat non-bacterial illnesses, and promote growth. 

As a result, Tanzania's livestock sector has some of the highest documented levels of antibiotic-resistant bacteria found anywhere in Sub-Saharan Africa, according to the World Organization for Animal Health. This issue poses serious risks for Tanzania's $1.2 billion dairy industry and undermines global efforts to control AMR, which already claims an estimated 700,000 human lives worldwide annually according to the UN. 

Our solution directly addresses this problem through demonstration and optimized farming protocols to reduce small-scale dairy farmers' 30% overuse of antibiotics in Tanzania, potentially impacting 6 million cattle and curbing the rise of drug-resistant infections locally and globally.

Our primary target audience is the approximately 3.7 million small-scale dairy farmers in Tanzania who own 2-10 milk cows. Through interviews and focus groups with over 150 farmers across 5 regions over the past 6 months, we have understood their needs intimately. Many of these 3.7 million smallholder farmers lack formal training and rely on routine antibiotic use due to misinformation about their roles and risks. They struggle with disease outbreaks that damage yields and incomes. VetCare directly addresses these needs by engaging farmers as core stakeholders from project design through implementation. 

Our field schools empower them with evidence-based skills and alternative protocols to take control of herd health sustainably while boosting productivity. By highlighting financial as well as public health impacts, we motivate behavior change. Farmers also provide ongoing feedback to shape our model, helping ensure it maximally meets the needs of smallholders in an inclusive way. Our regular remote monitoring further strengthens accountability and two-way communication to solve emerging challenges together.

To be more specific, the primary public good our solution provides is open-source knowledge and education resources related to combating antimicrobial resistance at the community level.

Through our work piloting and validating optimized livestock husbandry techniques that reduce unjustified antibiotic use, we generate the following public goods:

1. Openly accessible data reports and analyses published on our website. This includes anonymized quantitative data on antibiotic usage trends monitored in pilot communities over time, as well as qualitative insights from farmer interviews. 

2. Peer-reviewed publications in open access agricultural and public health journals. Initial papers will document evidence-based practices defined through our pilots, lessons learned on community engagement approaches, and metrics on behavior change and health impacts.  

3. Freely available online toolkits and training curricula incorporating standard operating procedures, extension materials, and experiential learning modules demonstrated as effective in our pilots. These can be directly adopted and adapted by others working in similar smallholder contexts globally.

By openly disseminating the knowledge resources generated through our pilot testing and research, we aim to contribute solutions and capacity building approaches to the public domain to advance the fight against antimicrobial resistance worldwide.

Activities: We provide training, remote monitoring tools, and advice through community-embedded field schools and AI chatbot. 

Outputs: By 2027, we will directly empower at least 150,000 smallholder livestock farmers across Tanzania with skills and resources to optimize animal husbandry without reliance on unjustified antibiotics. 

Outcomes: Participating farmers will voluntarily adopt sustainable protocols and maintain practices long-term, evidenced by a 20%+ reduction in AMU in target communities relative to baseline.

Impact: 
- In 3 years, our solution will have directly contributed to reduced AMU entering the food and agricultural systems used by 150,000 vulnerable farmers and their communities.

- Fewer drug-resistant infections will develop and spread amongst humans and livestock as antibiotic overuse is curbed. 

- Herd health and farmer incomes will improve at scale as livestock live longer, healthier lives with decreased disease prevalence and antibiotic costs. 

- Tanzania's agricultural trade will face fewer barriers protecting domestic and international markets from AMR contamination.

By empowering at least 150,000 smallholders through community-centered training and technologies within 3 years, our solution creates tangible nationwide impact against the growing threat of AMR.

Over the next year and 3 years, we will scale our impact through an evidence-based phase approach:

In Year 1 (2024), post our initial Mvomero pilot, we will expand to 3 additional districts (>3000 farmers reached). Leveraging lessons learned on engagement, we aim to reduce AMU by 25% in new areas. 

In Year 2 (2025), our field resources and data collection capabilities will grow via government/NGO partnerships. With infrastructure in 7 districts, we forecast empowering 15,000 farmers and driving a further 30% AMU decrease where active.

By Year 3 (2026), full scale-up commences across Tanzania's 32 mainland regions. Using telecommunications and precision agriculture tools to facilitate remote training, management and monitoring of 150,000+ farmers nationally becomes our goal. AMU reductions of 40-50% in these communities are projected as best practices crystallize. 

By 2025, we aim to transform smallholder livestock production practices significantly nationwide through our evidence-based model. Real-time data and cohort analyses refinement continually maximize impact and cost-effectiveness of the intervention for long-term sustainability and scale. Regular impact assessments maintain community engagement and adoption of optimized protocols to curb growing AMR risks.

We measure success against our goals using several key performance indicators:

1. Change in antibiotic usage (AMU) - Measured through quarterly surveys tracking classes/volumes of antibiotics prescribed for participating farmers pre- vs post-intervention. Our Mvomero pilot saw a 24% reduction in AMU after 6 months.

2. Adoption of best practices - Evaluated through farm observation reports on application of optimized protocols like improved hygiene, vaccination protocols, etc. Initial pilot participants averaged an 85% implementation rate. 

3. Herd health outcomes - Metrics include reductions in common diseases/mortality tracked by our SMS chatbot and annual physical farm assessments. In the pilot, farmers reported up to 60% less mastitis and diarrhea cases.

4. Farmer income effects - Survey data on crop/livestock sales and treatment cost savings pre- vs post- training will indicate economic impacts. About 15% higher average monthly incomes were found so far.  

5. Knowledge assessments - Tests administered at start/end of each training cycle measure skills absorption related directly to modules. Pilot participants scored 17% higher on average after training.

We conduct baseline assessments before each expansion and share key findings annually to demonstrate impact to stakeholders and optimally refine our approach.

Some key barriers we foresee and plans to address them:

Financial: Expansion requires ongoing funding. We are pursuing impact investment and partnership opportunities with NGOs/government. Minimum yearly costs are $370k. 

Technical: Remote regions lack stable power/network infrastructure. We will deploy solar-battery powered access points and broadcast SMS/radio where needed. 

Education: Some farmers have low literacy. Training uses experiential methods and our AI chatbot translates content into local languages orally via SMS/IVR. 

Policy: Antibiotic prescription protocols could hamper goals. We will engage veterinary boards to endorse best practices demonstrated and gain prescribing power for advanced technicians. 

Cultural: Traditional beliefs influence some behaviors. Through co-creation, training appeals to local knowledge and refines practices incrementally vs imposing change. 

Market: Rural regions lack market access. We boost producer collectives and work with cooperatives/traders for fair prices, incentivizing reduced AMU financially.

By proactively identifying and creatively problem-solving barriers, leveraging strategic partnerships for blended resources, and demonstrating impact, we believe our participatory, grassroots model can effectively overcome obstacles to achieving scale within our timelines.

We are applying to The Trinity Challenge because it uniquely aligns with our goals and is well positioned to help us overcome key barriers at this pivotal stage of growth. 

Specifically, the goals of the Challenge to empower communities and tackle complex global issues directly match our aim to sustainably reduce AMU and positively impact livelihoods through community-led action in Tanzania. 

The barriers we outlined around funding, infrastructure, education and partnerships are precisely what the scale of funding available through this Challenge can help us surmount.

£1 million in grant funding over 3 years would allow us to strategically scale past financial constraints holding us back from serving many more farmers nationwide. It would also catalyze new technical and partnership opportunities around remote monitoring solutions and expanding reach.

Additionally, the technical assistance resources offered can help navigate infrastructure and educational obstacles, strengthening our solution design. 

Most importantly, the credibility and network of a prestigious program like the Trinity Challenge will open new collaborative doors with governments, organizations and funders - taking our work to the next level.

These are few organizations I would like to collaborate with to help accelerate my solution to the Trinity Challenge on antimicrobial resistance:

Wellcome - As the anchor funder of the Trinity Challenge, Wellcome has deep expertise in global health issues like AMR and funding biomedical research. Partnering with them could help scale testing and validation of my solution. 

Ineos Oxford Institute for Antimicrobial Research - Their focus on developing new antibiotics aligns closely with the goals of my solution. Collaborating would help strengthen the scientific underpinnings of my approach and identify ways to partner on clinical trials.  

Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation - As a major global health philanthropist, the Gates Foundation has resources and networks that could help pilot and disseminate my solution, especially in developing countries where AMR is a pressing challenge. 

Global Virome Project - Their goal of discovering new viruses with pandemic potential intersects with my focus on predicting antibiotic resistance transfer between bacteria and viruses. A partnership could yield insights to refine my predictive models.