EQA Trials and Summary Reports
Ensuring quality data for AMR surveillance
From 2021–2025, EQAsia held 11 External Quality Assessments (EQA) that National Reference Laboratories and Centres of Excellence located in South and Southeast Asia were eligible to join.
EQA trials were conducted twice per year and provided a user-friendly scheme wherein participating laboratories could choose components for testing based on our available panel list. The trial design focused on phenotypic species identification and antimicrobial susceptibility testing (AST) of WHO-GLASS and FAO priority pathogens, and supported EQAsia’s One Health approach by including pathogens from both Animal Health and Human Health sectors.
The one-stop-shop design of the EQA scheme encompassed provision, coordination, analysis of results, and individualized feedback and support. After data were submitted, DTU analyzed the results and provided recommendations tailored to each laboratory, as well as follow-up sessions to support underperforming laboratories. The programme also implemented a unique, approachable online informatic tool for reporting and analysis of EQA results. This simplified the data processing for EQA facilitators and enabled participants to assess new EQA results and review past performance.
Alongside the EQA trials, EQAsia also offered an annual Matrix EQA. This involved selective isolation of ESBL-, AmpC-, and carbapenemase-producing E. coli, plus antimicrobial susceptibility testing (AST) of isolates mimicking meat content.
Summary Reports of EQA Trials
EQAsia published an executive summary report after each External Quality Assessment (EQA) trial.
Below you can find the reports from EQAs conducted over the course of the EQAsia project.
Our EQA summary reports offer a valuable overview of EQA results, helping laboratories and professionals enhance their performance and maintain the highest standards of quality in their work.
- EQA11 (2025): Salmonella spp., Enterococcus spp., Campylobacter spp., & Neisseria gonorrhoeae.
- EQA10 (2025): Escherichia coli, Klebsiella pneumoniae, Staphylococcus aureus, & Pseudomonas aeruginosa.
- EQA9 (2024): Shigella spp., Enterococcus spp., Campylobacter spp., & Neisseria gonorrhoeae.
- EQA8 (2024): Escherichia coli, Klebsiella pneumoniae, Staphylococcus aureus, & Acinetobacter spp.
- EQA7 (2023): Salmonella spp., Enterococci spp., Campylobacter spp., & Neisseria gonorrhoeae.
- EQA6 (2023): Escherichia coli, Klebsiella pneumoniae, Staphylococcus aureus, & Pseudomonas aeruginosa.
- EQA5 (2022): Enterococci spp., Campylobacter jejuni / C. coli, & Streptococcus pneumoniae.
- EQA4 (2022): Klebsiella pneumoniae, Staphylococcus aureus, & Acinetobacter spp.
- EQA3 (2021): Salmonella spp., Escherichia coli, Campylobacter jejuni / C. coli, Enterococci faecium / E. faecalis, Pseudomonas aeruginosa, & Streptococcus pneumoniae.
- EQA2 (2021): Klebsiella pneumoniae, Shigella spp., Acinetobacter spp., & Staphylococcus aureus.
- EQA1 (2021): Escherichia coli & Salmonella spp.
Matrix EQA Summary Reports
Selective isolation of presumptive ESBL-, AmpC-, and carbapenemase-producing Escherichia coli from cultures mimicking meat samples.
- 1st Matrix EQA (2021)
- 2nd Matrix EQA (2022)
- 3rd Matrix EQA (2023)
- 4th Matrix EQA (2024)
- 5th Matrix EQA (2025)
EQAsia EQA Costing Tool
EQAsia consortium partners at the International Vaccine Institute (IVI) in Seoul developed an EQA costing tool, which is linked below. Please note that the tool was developed to estimate and forecast the cost of the EQAsia EQA scheme. Other EQA schemes will have different costing considerations, but the tool may still be useful to provide an example of how an EQA costing tool could function and what it should include.