2015-201711/25/14

ALTERNATIVES TO THE HARMFUL USE OF ANIMALS

IN EDUCATIONAL EXPERIMENTS, RESEARCH

AND TESTING

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P.O Box 3731 – 00506 Nairobi Cell: +254-(0)734 – 2234447 T74869 / +254 – (0)727 –234447Tel: 6006510 Fax:6009691 1st Westend place Email: info@anaw.org

www.anaw.org

Animals are widely used in testing (education, research and experimentation) in Kenya. The species used include rats, mice, primates, farmed animals, dogs and cats. The exact number of animals used for research is not known.

The main organizations that use animals for testing include universities and biomedical laboratories.

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Study of animals in formal education in Kenya is offered at all levels of learning starting from Class 1 to university.

Class1- 3: Social Ethics and Science (Theoretical, observatory non capture methods)

Class 4-8: Social Ethics, Science and Agriculture- (theoretical, observatory, both capture & non-capture, non-invasive methods)

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Invasive use of animals (laboratory animals) starts at secondary school in biology in topics like digestive system, reproductive system

Tertiary institutions: Use lab animals in specialized courses

Numerous alternatives have been developed globally to replace animals used in testing.

Most students and educators are not aware of these

alternatives.

Research scientists are yet to adopt the use of alternatives in their course of work.

In addition, alternatives are not readily available in Kenya

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ANAW’s interest in alternatives to animal testing stems from its commitment to promote the humane treatment of all animals.

This is guided by the conviction that animals are sentient beings that have feelings and emotions and respond to physiological and psychological changes in the environment.

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In September 2009, ANAW held a conference which included campaigners from across 11 African countries and in 2010 campaigners from across 28 African countries.

Participants were drawn from various learning institutions, government representatives, Africa International Animal Welfare campaigners and professional associations

The conference was aimed at introducing and educating stakeholders on alternatives to animals testing.

ANAW is the alternatives center in Africa with the first alternatives library in partnership with InterNICHE

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Speeches delivered by various speakers presented a broad picture of the views and concerns held by people working in science and animal welfare.

Conclusions/Highlights:Data on the number of animals used for testing was deficient due to lack of a standard reporting procedure. Local use of alternatives was limited due to lack of information. Educators play a pivotal role in the development and execution of the curriculum. Further training on alternatives would favor their adoption in schools.

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Recommendations:The development, implementation and dissemination of alternatives should be prioritized once funds are made available from donors. Every effort should be made to reduce the number of animals used in laboratory experiments.An ethical committee should be set up to regulate the use of animals in testing.A centralized resource center should be set up to stock various alternatives for free, sale or on a loan basis.An elaborate outreach campaign needs to be drafted to reach professional dealing with alternatives.

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Since 2010 to date, ANAW has been engaging students and members of staff on these alternatives in various institutions of higher learning.

The approach has been mainly discussion-based and open debate fora. Simple workshop and seminar-like demonstrations have also been part of these discussions although largely limited by available material that can be provided for purposes of training to these institutions.

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Baseline surveys indicate that 2010:

◦ 77% of the institutions did not have an ethical committee and if they did the ethical committees were inactive. ◦ 70% of the institutions taught some

ethical courses. In most of the institutions, ethical courses were entrenched in other subjects as a topic as opposed to the few institutions where ethical courses were taught as a stand-alone subject.

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◦ 23% of the institutions had no ethical guideline on the use of lab animals.

◦ In 62% of the institutions, there is no

set official threshold on the number of animals that can be used in experiments. The threshold is set by the amount of money available to buy the animal and experiment materials

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Kimwele C et al., 2011:

◦ 97.4% of thirty-nine institutions reported using animals for education and/or research. ◦ 76.9% institutions reported using analgesics or anesthetics on a

regular basis. ◦ 33.3% institutions regularly used statistical methods to

minimize the use of animals. ◦ 41.0%) institutions explored the use of alternatives to animals

such as cell cultures and computer simulation techniques◦ One (2.6%) academic institution having completely replaced

animals with computer modeling, manikins and visual illustrations. ◦ Twenty-eight (71.8%) institutions had no designated ethics

committee to review or monitor protocols using animals.

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2009 Animal Welfare Conference, Nairobi Kenya.

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Interaction with the

alternatives during trainings

and seminars at sc

hools

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Exhibitions at talks and seminars

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Keen participants at Baraton University.

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Dr. Nick Jukes (InterNICHE)

The use of alternatives is humane and provides a superior educational experience compared to the actual use of animals.

They can be used over and over again without limit to the number or place of study.

Alternatives can offer unambiguous and complete data and

avoid the possibility of a failed experiment as can happen when using animal models (for instance, if the animal is unwell).

The built-in self -assessment also gives the student a degree of flexibility in evaluating whether they have achieved the set objectives.

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There are phenomena that are unobservable in animal experiments (e.g. organ and cell functions) that are easily demonstrable in equivalent alternative experiments.

In medical and veterinary training, students are psychologically prepared to handle delicate experiments (e.g. minimal invasive surgery) by continuous practice on alternatives. This gives rise to more confident and competent professionals.

The initial input in terms of cost is high but the expense is justified in the long run

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Some of the colleges and universities we have worked with in Kenya :

◦ University of Nairobi◦ Baraton University◦ Kenyatta university

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CDs and DVDs –species based Manikins Injection pads POP trainer

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Main objective Replacement or the substitution of animals used in

research with non-animal models; Other objectives: Raise awareness on the alternatives to use of animals. Introduce alternatives to use of animals in institutions

of higher learning and research institutions. Increase availability of alternatives.

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ActivitiesFurnishing the library: we will seek to acquire and equip our library with complete kits as well as locally available alternates. Working with the already available resources in our library, we will operate a loan system for alternatives.

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Outreach campaign: Working in partnership with other institutions, we will draw an outreach campaign program to reach out to universities, colleges and biomedical research laboratories. The program will aim at increasing awareness of available alternatives and encouraging their adoption in research and testing.

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ANAW exhibition desk on alternatives during a conference in 2013

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ANAW resources used for seminars and trainings on display and a member of ANAW staff.

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Activities A. Seminars

B. Advocacy on social media

C. Ordering and stocking of materials

A. Number of seminars held

B. Number of documentaries

C. Number of materials in stock

A. Progress reports

B. Progress reports

C. Stock records

A. The institutions will host the seminars at the agreed time.

B. The documentaries will be done in good time.

C. The materials will be readily available when needed.

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Expected results

1. Increased use of alternatives

2. Increase public awareness of alternatives

3. Increase local availability of alternatives

1. Replacement of laboratory animals with alternatives

2. Knowledge of types of alternatives

3. Ordering of alternatives from resource center

1. Survey

2. Survey

3. Stock control system

1. The respondents will be willing to fill out the feedback forms.

2. The members of the public will have viewed the sites.

3. Materials at resource center will be enough to loan out.

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Africa Network for Animal Welfareinfo @anaw.orgwww.anaw.org