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SARS-CoV-2 has clearly shown that efficient management of infectious diseases requires a top-down approach which must be complemented with a bottom-up response to be effective. Here we investigate a novel approach to surveillance for transboundary animal diseases using African Swine (ASF) fever as a model. We collected data both at a population level and at the local level on information-seeking behavior respectively through digital data and targeted questionnaire-based surveys to relevant stakeholders such as pig farmers and veterinary authorities. Our study shows how information-seeking behavior and resulting public attention during an epidemic, can be identified through novel data streams from digital platforms such as Wikipedia. Leveraging attention in a critical moment can be key to providing the correct information at the right moment, especially to an interested cohort of people. We also bring evidence on how field surveys aimed at local workers and veterinary authorities remain a crucial tool to assess more in-depth preparedness and awareness among front-line actors. We conclude that these two tools should be used in combination to maximize the outcome of surveillance and prevention activities for selected transboundary animal diseases such as ASF.

Background Backyard chicken farming is usually subsistence and predominates in low-income countries and, to a lesser extent, in middle-income countries. Chicken flocks are generally raised by households in a low-input, low-output system in contact with other flocks, livestock, and wildlife. This low biosecurity setting predisposes chickens to diseases and injuries. A systematic review was conducted to assess the impact of diseases and other causes of mortality in backyard chickens from low income and middle-income countries. Results The systematic literature review was conducted following the PRISMA guidelines. Databases consulted included: PubMed, Medline in OVID, Scopus, Web of Knowledge, CAB direct, AGRIS, AgEconSearch, Agricola, Google Scholar, CyberLeninka, CNKI, LILACS, TCI, SID and Civilica. Of the 40,121 studies identified, 78 studies were selected. Only a limited number of studies ( n  = 7) assessed the impact on productivity (weight and egg production losses). Results from the meta-analyses showed that the three main causes of mortality in a production cycle are viral diseases (24.5%, 12.4–42.7), the mix of bacterial and viral diseases (24.2%, 6.2–58.2) and bacterial diseases (11.2%, 4.6–25.0). These three causes of mortality also account for the highest proportion of economic losses for infectious diseases. In the case of non-infectious causes, predation and cachexia are responsible for the highest economic losses in backyard chickens. Conclusions Infectious diseases account for the highest economic and mortality losses examined in the selected studies. However, losses due to other causes, such as predation, should not be overlooked. These results could be used to support animal health policy in informing resource allocation to preventive measures to improve food security.

A Knowledge, Attitudes, and Practices (KAP) questionnaire was designed to collect information on farmers’ knowledge of ASF and their practices surrounding that could impact the spread of the disease. The questionnaire was distributed, and data collected, from 233 backyard farmers from five selected Oblasts (Rivne, Kharkiv, Odessa, Zakarpattia and Kiev). Kruskal‐Wallis tests were conducted to identify factors that could influence knowledge, and Dunn tests were performed to determine differences between groups when the Kruskal‐Wallis tests were significant. Spearman tests were carried out to explore the association between knowledge and risky practices. Results show that comprehensive knowledge on ASF is not common in backyard farmers and that risky practices that influence the spread of ASF are regularly performed. Of the respondents, 47% felt well‐informed about how ASF can be transmitted and 31.8% felt confident about recognizing clinical signs of ASF. The independent variable “Oblast” was identified as a significant factor (p = 0.0015) associated with differences in knowledge on clinical signs. We demonstrated statistically significant differences of knowledge between backyard farmers from different Oblasts. Knowledge of preventive measures was positively correlated with risky handling practices related to edible pork products (p = 0.0053) and non‐edible pork products (p = 0.0417). In conclusion, our results show that backyard farmers have knowledge gaps on ASF and practice various risky behaviours that might favour the spread of the disease in Ukraine. There are regional differences in ASF knowledge and risky practices that should be taken into consideration in future evidence‐based ASF prevention and control programs, including public awareness activities. A Knowledge, Attitudes and Practices survey to backyard farmers in Ukraine was conducted to support control programs on African Swine Fever in the country. Results show that risky practices that influence the spread of ASF are regularly performed in backyard systems in Ukraine and that farmers would benefit from public outreach activities on ASF.

SARS-CoV-2 has clearly shown that efficient management of infectious diseases requires a top-down approach which must be complemented with a bottom-up response to be effective. Here we investigate a novel approach to surveillance for transboundary animal diseases using African Swine (ASF) fever as a model. We collected data both at a population level and at the local level on information-seeking behavior respectively through digital data and targeted questionnaire-based surveys to relevant stakeholders such as pig farmers and veterinary authorities. Our study shows how information-seeking behavior and resulting public attention during an epidemic, can be identified through novel data streams from digital platforms such as Wikipedia. Leveraging attention in a critical moment can be key to providing the correct information at the right moment, especially to an interested cohort of people. We also bring evidence on how field surveys aimed at local workers and veterinary authorities remain a crucial tool to assess more in-depth preparedness and awareness among front-line actors. We conclude that these two tools should be used in combination to maximize the outcome of surveillance and prevention activities for selected transboundary animal diseases such as ASF.

The SARS-CoV-2 pandemic has unveiled the importance of stakeholders and ordinary citizens in managing infectious disease emergencies. Efficient management of infectious diseases requires a top-down approach which must be complemented with a bottom-up response to be effective. Here we investigate a novel approach to surveillance for transboundary animal diseases using African Swine fever as a model. We were able to collect data at a population level on information-seeking behavior and at a local level through a targeted questionnaire-based survey to relevant stakeholders such as farmers and veterinary authorities. Our study shows how information-seeking behavior and resulting public attention during an epidemic, can be addressed through novel data streams from digital platforms such as Wikipedia. We also bring evidence on how field surveys aimed at local workers (e.g. farmers) and public authorities remain a crucial tool to assess more in-depth preparedness and awareness among front-line actors. We conclude that they should be used in combination to maximize the outcome of surveillance and prevention activities for selected transboundary animal diseases. Competing Interest Statement The authors have declared no competing interest. Footnotes * This version of the manuscript includes the supplementary material missing in the previous for technical problems.