Infectious diseases management in small-scale freshwater aquaculture in West Africa: lessons for low- and middle-income countries

Infectious diseases management in small-scale freshwater aquaculture in West Africa: lessons for low- and middle-income countries | Research Square window.SnipcartSettings = { analytics: { enabled: false } }; (function() { var accessVector = localStorage.getItem('access_vector') || ''; window.dataLayer = window.dataLayer || []; if (accessVector) { window.dataLayer.push({ user: { profile: { profileInfo: { snid: accessVector } } } }); } })(); (function(w,d,s,l,i){w[l]=w[l]||[];w[l].push({'gtm.start':new Date().getTime(),event:'gtm.js'});var f=d.getElementsByTagName(s)[0],j=d.createElement(s),dl=l!='dataLayer'?'&l='+l:'';j.async=true;j.src='https://www.googletagmanager.com/gtm.js?id='+i+dl;f.parentNode.insertBefore(j,f);})(window,document,'script','dataLayer','GTM-K279D39R'); Browse Preprints In Review Journals COVID-19 Preprints AJE Video Bytes Research Tools Research Promotion AJE Professional Editing AJE Rubriq About Preprint Platform In Review Editorial Policies Our Team Advisory Board Help Center Sign In Submit a Preprint Cite Share Download PDF Systematic Review Infectious diseases management in small-scale freshwater aquaculture in West Africa: lessons for low- and middle-income countries Mame Boucar Diouf, Robane Faye, Ahou Rachel Koumi, Nounagnon Darius Tossavi, and 15 more This is a preprint; it has not been peer reviewed by a journal. https://doi.org/ 10.21203/rs.3.rs-9075510/v1 This work is licensed under a CC BY 4.0 License Status: Published Journal Publication published 06 Apr, 2026 Read the published version in Reviews in Aquaculture → Version 1 posted You are reading this latest preprint version Abstract Infectious diseases are an increasing threat to food security, small-scale livelihoods and the sustainability of aquaculture in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs). In sub-Saharan Africa, aquaculture is expanding rapidly but production systems often remain fragile. In West Africa, particularly in Benin, Côte d’Ivoire and Senegal, production remains modest despite rising demand. Interactions between farming practices, environmental exposures (e.g., contaminants and agricultural effluents) and pathogen emergence are poorly documented. Here we review evidence on production systems, reported pathogens, diagnostic and surveillance capacity in these three countries. We find that (i) production relies mainly on small-scale ponds, cages often within integrated agro-aquaculture systems with recurring constraints in biosecurity, water management and governance; (ii) available evidence is fragmented and uneven across pathogen groups, with most reports focusing on bacterial and parasitic conditions and major gaps for viruses, fungi, co-infections, antimicrobial resistance and combined environmental pressures; and (iii) health management and laboratory capacities remain constrained, but existing networks and experience from terrestrial animal health provide entry points for integrated and participatory surveillance. We discuss these patterns through an exposome-informed One Health lens, highlighting how multiple exposure pathways link farms, watersheds and nearby communities. Based on this synthesis, we outline research and policy priorities to strengthen health resilience and to support more sustainable small-scale freshwater aquaculture in West Africa and, with relevance to other tropical LMIC settings. Aquaculture and Mariculture small-scale freshwater aquaculture West Africa fish disease antimicrobial resistance exposome-informed One Health Full Text Additional Declarations The authors declare no competing interests. Cite Share Download PDF Status: Published Journal Publication published 06 Apr, 2026 Read the published version in Reviews in Aquaculture → Version 1 posted You are reading this latest preprint version Research Square lets you share your work early, gain feedback from the community, and start making changes to your manuscript prior to peer review in a journal. As a division of Research Square Company, we’re committed to making research communication faster, fairer, and more useful. We do this by developing innovative software and high quality services for the global research community. Our growing team is made up of researchers and industry professionals working together to solve the most critical problems facing scientific publishing. Also discoverable on Platform About Our Team In Review Editorial Policies Advisory Board Help Center Resources Author Services Accessibility API Access RSS feed Manage Cookie Preferences © Research Square 2026 | ISSN 2693-5015 (online) Privacy Policy Terms of Service Do Not Sell My Personal Information {"props":{"pageProps":{"initialData":{"identity":"rs-9075510","acceptedTermsAndConditions":true,"allowDirectSubmit":true,"archivedVersions":[],"articleType":"Systematic Review","associatedPublications":[],"authors":[{"id":603312737,"identity":"e9a1bb03-6ce2-4729-beaf-16db2301c854","order_by":0,"name":"Mame Boucar 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