29 Nov 2023
West African Primate Conservation Action and Wildlife Vets International teamed up to offer a learning opportunity for two veterinary officers from Ghana.
Lacey Pitcher
Job Title
Gilbert Gyebi (left) and Samuel Asumah have received training in the UK due to a partnership involving Wildlife Vets International, West African Primate Conservation Action and VetCT.
A leading veterinary charity joined forces with a conservation group to help two Ghanaian vets to access training in the UK.
Gilbert Gyebi and Samuel Asumah met with academics and staff from several well-known wildlife facilities through the link between Wildlife Vets International (WVI) and West African Primate Conservation Action.
The pair are based at Accra and Kumasi Zoo and are responsible for the veterinary care of endangered primates, such as white-naped mangabeys and critically endangered roloway monkeys.
They work for the Wildlife Division, the government body of the Forestry Commission of Ghana, which also owns the two zoos.
Matthew Rendle RVN has been working with the Ghanaian vets as part of his work with WVI since 2020, initially with primates and more recently with sea turtles, and the partnership allows for peer-to-peer mentoring to have a direct impact on conservation.
WVI Executive director Olivia Walter said: “Training local veterinary teams to provide exceptional care to wildlife is vital to the longevity and success of conservation projects and the opportunity for Dr Gyebi and Dr Asumah to shadow zoo vet teams in the UK was invaluable.
“WVI exists because disease can so easily derail endangered species conservation, especially when numbers are critically low, or populations are very fragmented.
“As a small organisation, collaboration is key to everything we do – both in how we work with conservation partners around the world and in the invaluable support we get from corporate partners like VetCT.”
During their visit, which included trips to Twycross Zoo, Paradise Wildlife Park and Woburn Safari Park, the RVC and culminated at the London Vet Show (LVS), both vets enjoyed hands-on experience that offered valuable insights in areas such as how animals in zoos can be trained to minimise their stress during important veterinary procedures.
The initiative has also been supported by telemedicine firm VetCT, which has partnered with WVI to raise funds and also collected donations at LVS where the team met the vets too.
Liz Barton, of VetCT, said: “VetCT is delighted to be partnering with Wildlife Vets International to support the vital work they do by providing veterinary expertise to support endangered species conservation projects.
“As we have a global team and a core focus on knowledge-sharing, WVI’s global mission and education initiatives resonate with our team and our goals.
“We will continue to raise funds through our donation-matching initiative until the end of 2023 to support more veterinary professionals, like Dr Asumah and Dr Gyebi from Ghana, in building and sharing expertise to support projects in biodiverse countries.”
Donations can be made via JustGiving and further information about WVI’s work is on its website.
