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This paper is being written at a time when the recent pandemic, namely COVID-19, has shaken the entire world in a manner that has never been seen in modern history. The ecology, socio-economy and weak health systems make Africa an area favorable to the occurrence of various diseases and disease outbreaks. This paper explores forty-eight (48) years of disease outbreaks in the WHO African region of the World Health Organization (WHO). Twenty-five (25) Integrated Disease Surveillance and Response priority diseases were selected, and their outbreaks were described and analyzed. Using inferential spatial statistics, spatial clusters at the health district level, specifically hot spots of those outbreaks, were produced and analyzed. The Population at risk of those hot spots was estimated. Results show a consistent report of outbreaks during the selected period, with 52 outbreaks on average per year. Poliomyelitis, cholera, yellow fever, meningococcal disease and measles were the most reported outbreaks. Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) and Nigeria were the countries reporting the highest number of outbreaks (5 on average per year), with high number of people living in hot spots districts (85M). Despite efforts to limit their number, some disease outbreaks, such as cholera, malaria, and measles, continue to have a burden in terms of morbidity and mortality. In contrast, others, such as poliomyelitis, yellow fever and diarrhoeal disease, have shown a declining trend, and wild polio virus transmission has been eliminated in the region. Results suggest that concerted public health action may help reduce outbreaks in the region. Results can be used to inform preparedness and prevention activities. Priority public health actions should target DRC and Nigeria and identified hot spots and areas with existing risk factors within other countries.

Introduction and Aims: The prioritisation of oral health in all health policies in the WHO African region is gaining momentum. Dental schools in this region are key stakeholders in informing the development and subsequent downstream implementation and monitoring of these policies. The objectives of our study are to determine how dental schools contribute to oral health policies (OHPs) in this region, to identify the barriers to and facilitators for engaging with other local stakeholders, and to understand their capacity to respond to population and public health needs., Methods: We developed a needs assessment survey, including quantitative and qualitative questions. The survey was developed electronically in Qualtrics and distributed by email in February 2023 to the deans or other designees at dental schools in the WHO African region. Data were analysed in SAS version 9.4 and ATLAS.ti., Results: The capacity for dental schools to respond to population and public health needs varied. Most schools have postgraduate programs to train the next generation of researchers. However, these programs have limitations that may hinder the students from achieving the necessary skills and training. A majority (75%) of respondents were aware of the existence of national OHPs and encountered a myriad of challenges when engaging with them, including a lack of coordination with other stakeholders, resources, and oral health professionals, and the low priority given to oral health. Their strengths as technical experts and researchers was a common facilitator for engaging with OHPs., Conclusion: Dental schools in the region face common challenges and facilitators in engaging in the OHP process. There were several school-specific research and training capacities that enabled them to respond to population and public health needs. Overall, shared challenges and facilitators can inform stakeholder dialogues at a national and subnational level and help develop tailored solutions for enhancing the oral health policy pipeline., Competing Interests: Conflict of interest The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper., (Copyright © 2024. Published by Elsevier Inc.)