Faculty of Health Sciences at Islamic University of Gaza (IUG) signed a memorandum of understanding with the International Society of Red Cross (ICRC) in Gaza to implement three research projects directed to biosecurity in the poultry sector in the Gaza Strip and investigate the behaviors related to dispensing antibiotics in poultry farms in the Gaza Strip. Signing the agreement came to crown the efforts exerted in the framework of reducing bacterial resistance to antibiotics by regulating and rationalizing the use of these antibiotics in the health sector and the livestock production sector.
The agreement was signed by the Dean of the Faculty of Health Sciences, Dr. Mazen Al-Zaharnh, on behalf of IUG and by Mr. Robert Burtscher on behalf of ICRC, in the presence of Prof. Abdelraouf A. Elmanama, Director of the Communicable Diseases Surveillance Center (CDSC) at the Faculty of Health Sciences.
CDSC will conduct the three researches to answer a set of questions. The first research is entitled “Knowledge, Attitudes and Practices of Biosecurity of Poultry Farmers in the Gaza Strip”, the second is “Assessment of the Quality of Drinking Water, Feed and Storage Conditions in Poultry Farms in the Gaza Strip”, and the third research is entitled “Assessment of the Biosecurity Status in Poultry Farms in the Gaza Strip”.
These researches obtained ethical approval and were approved by the ICRC. They will contribute to planning interventions to address some urgent problems in the poultry sector, which will enhance the resilience of farmers and at the same time reduce dependence on antibiotics by preventing pathogens from entering the farms or transferring them from farm to farm. Working on the research projects will commence at the beginning of September of this year and end at the end of December 2023.
It is worth noting that ICRS in Gaza supported and contributed in the activities of the World Antimicrobial Awareness Week 2021, which have been executed by the Faculty of Health Sciences since 2016.
