Portfolio
Yanira Santana Morales

On mission

FAO · Central African Republic

Senior Risk Communications Specialist

Strategic and crisis communications response

I turn technical response work into communications people can trust and act on.

17+ years in the field — currently Risk Communication Specialist for Animal Health, FAO Central African Republic.

Work with me See case studies

Risk & crisis comms · One Health · SBCC · EN / FR / ES / PT

What I do

Risk & crisis communications for the global food system.

Strategy, content and outreach for UN agencies, donors and governments responding to zoonotic disease, AMR and humanitarian crises.

  • Risk & Crisis Communication

    National strategies, SOPs and emergency playbooks — RVF, AMR, zoonoses.

  • One Health & SBCC

    Behaviour-change campaigns for farmers, vets and frontline communities.

  • Multilingual Outreach

    Radio, TV, posters and digital — EN / FR / ES / PT, validated locally.

  • Donor & Media Engagement

    Proposals, reporting and on-the-record media for UN, EU and bilaterals.

Selected work

Stories that inspire change across institutions, communities and systems.

A cross-section of articles, video, campaigns, reports and on-the-record media interventions.

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Case studies

Problem → approach → outcome.

Three representative engagements showing how risk communication moves from strategy to measurable change in the field.

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FAO · Central African Republic · 2025–present

Standing up risk communication for animal health in a fragile state.

The challenge
Recurrent zoonotic outbreaks (RVF, anthrax, rabies) in a country with limited veterinary services, low literacy in remote areas and four working languages — and no national risk communication framework for animal health.
The approach
Built the country's first risk-comms playbook with the Ministry of Livestock: rapid-response SOPs, multilingual message banks (FR / Sango / Arabic), radio scripts for community stations, and a One Health coordination cell linking vets, public health and humanitarian actors.
The outcome
A national risk communication strategy for animal health and outreach materials tailored to at-risk communities.

4

languages deployed

Radio

community messaging

1st

national RC framework

Regional · Sub-Saharan Africa · AMR

Behaviour-change campaign on Antimicrobial Resistance for farmers & vets.

The challenge
Misuse of veterinary antimicrobials by smallholder livestock keepers — driven by access patterns, weak prescription enforcement and low awareness of AMR risks across the One Health interface.
The approach
Audience research with farmers, agro-vets and para-vets; co-designed messaging tested in three languages; multi-channel rollout via radio, posters, WhatsApp voice notes and trained community influencers; trained 40+ national focal points on SBCC fundamentals.
The outcome
Communication materials and training to support conversations about responsible antimicrobial use.

40+

focal points trained

3

languages validated

23

countries reached

UN · Guinea-Bissau · 2014–2017

Communications for the UN Resident Coordinator in Guinea-Bissau.

The challenge
Sensitive periods called for clear public communications and coordinated responses to media requests.
The approach
Prepared talking points, speeches and press conferences for the UN Resident Coordinator in Guinea-Bissau and handled media requests during sensitive periods.
The outcome
Better-prepared public remarks and media responses during sensitive periods.

17+

years in the system

+60%

more visibility

4

working languages

Browse the work

Three ways into the portfolio.

Articles & Op-eds

Long-form pieces and field reporting on food systems, One Health and crisis response.

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Video & Documentary

Visual storytelling from the field — partners, communities and policy moments on camera.

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Reports & Briefs

Technical reports, policy briefs and donor-facing documentation, edited for impact.

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