On June 3 in Tbilisi, the US Ambassador and representatives from the governments of Azerbaijan and Georgia will congratulate the first cohort of epidemiology and laboratory specialists from the South Caucasus Field Epidemiology and Laboratory Training Program (SC/FELTP). The SC/FELTP -- a $7.2 million U.S. funded, six year program - is a partnership between the US-Center for Disease Control and the ministries of health and agriculture/state veterinary services in Georgia, Azerbaijan and Armenia. The SC/FELTP will transition to host country leadership over a period of approximately six years.

The news agency GHN was informed from USA embassy the Georgia National Center for Disease Control and Public Health is the host agency and provides offices and classroom space for the SC/FELTP and for the US CDC office in the South Caucasus Region. The June 3 graduation includes four Azerbaijani and seven Georgian technical specialists from the Ministries of Agriculture and Health of both countries. A second, larger class is half way through its training and contains 16 specialists from Armenia, Azerbaijan and Georgia.

Similar to 35 programs around the globe, the SC/FELTP gives in-service training to public health and veterinary health specialists working in the host country. The goal of SC/ FELTP is to strengthen epidemiology and laboratory capacity to detect, control and prevent diseases affecting humans and animals. Among animal diseases, those also affecting humans or having the potential to impact food security and safety are of particular interest. The SC/FELTP is a two-year program that combines a series of classroom training and mentored practical work in disease surveillance, outbreak investigation, prevention and control. Two US CDC specialists, an epidemiologist and a laboratory scientist, are assigned as resident advisors to lead the program in collaboration with host country counterparts.