The Nigeria Centre for Disease Control and Prevention (NCDC) and the Robert Koch Institute have collaborated on global health security and infectious disease control for over a decade. Since 2019, they have partnered in the NiCaDe project. Colleagues from units 15, 37, and ZIG office work on strengthening Nigeria’s public health capacities for preventing and responding to infectious diseases. The project includes four subprojects focused on Infection Prevention and Control (IPC), Hepatitis/Rotavirus, Antimicrobial Resistance, and Research Governance.

The NiCaDe IPC subproject emphasizes building training capacity to improve hygiene practices in healthcare facilities. Together, we developed a training and practice approach for participatory quality improvement in Infection Prevention and Control, known as “PALS – Participatory Approach to Learning in Systems”, which has been successfully implemented as Training of Trainers and in 41 hospitals.

Nigeria’s IPC progress in recent years is highlighted in the World Health Organization’s Global Report on Infection Prevention and Control 2024. The report recognizes RKI as a key partner, acknowledges the implementation of PALS as a significant milestone, and credits the participatory approach as a critical success factor.

During the National Conference on Infection Control in Nigeria in December 2024, the Nigerian Society for Infection Control (NSIC) presented the RKI with an Award of Recognition for its contributions to advancing Infection Prevention and Control in Nigeria.

Watch here NCDC’s video of Nigeria’s IPC story.