The Minister of Food and Agriculture, Owusu Afriyie Akoto, says his ministry has received financial clearance to commence the recruitment of 550 veterinary professionals across the country.
The move, according to the Minister, is part of government’s unprecedented intervention to strengthen the capacity of the Veterinary Services Directorate (VSD) for effective management of animal health in the country.
Dr Afriyie Akoto made this known during a media encounter in Accra to provide updates on government’s containment efforts of the Highly Pathogenic Avian Influenza Disease (Bird Flu) and other transboundary animal diseases in the country.
He recounted that government granted approval for the immediate recruitment and deployment an initial 550 veterinary professionals, out of a total of 1100 professionals, throughout the country.
Intervention
The intervention also include approval for the release of an emergency budget support of approximately GHC44 million to the Ministry for the implementation of an action plan involving some key activities for combating the HPAI. The activities include creation of public awareness on the HPAI; engagement with key stakeholders; stamping out, decontamination, procurement of disposal materials and other logistics; as well as payments of compensations to affected farmers.
He explained that as at October last year, about seven out of the 16 regions in the country had been hit by the HPAI, adding that “the remaining nine regions equally at risk due to the rapid spreading nature of the disease”.
“The Bono, Upper East and Eastern regions are the latest to record cases of Bird Flu, while some of the already affected regions continue to experience new cases. Other notable cases reported most recently are in Sunyani in the Bono Region,” he disclosed.
He said his ministry had also received approval for the release of about GHC20 million to carry out the activities, with the hope that the remaining 50 percent of the approved budget be received to enable the Ministry procure vehicles, motorbikes and laboratory equipment for operational purposes.
According to him, the availability of logistics will go a long way to strengthen the capacity of the Veterinary Service Directorate to carry out its very important mandate of protecting Ghana’s livestock and poultry industry, through surveillance and timely enforcement of biosecurity measures on farms.
“The logistics will also empower the Ministry to enforce compliance of biosecurity and management standards of livestock and poultry farms,” he said.
Legislation
He lamented that the country’s poultry and livestock industry had become vulnerable to the outbreak of transboundary animal diseases due to the absence of an updated Animal Health Act to effectively regulate the industry.
The Minister added that government had taken the necessary steps to update the existing 1960 Animal Health Act by finalising a new bill for introduction to parliament this year.
The Act, he said, when passed, will empower the Ministry through the VSD to regulate the industry and other proposals of the bill.
“My Ministry is responding within the constraints of available resources to protect and mitigate the adverse impact of the disease on the livestock and poultry industry, while awaiting the release of approved funds to combat the spread of the HPAI in the country,” he added.
He disclosed that the Ministry was rolling out a comprehensive communication plan to sensitise the general public and targeted stakeholders at the national, regional and district levels about the HPAI and other transboundary animal diseases.
“The provision of technical services by the VSD, the nationwide sensitization programme is key to the success of stemming the further spread of the disease in the country.
“We will also collaborate with Traditional Authorities, MMDAs, Famers and Value Chain Actors within the livestock and poultry industry, the media, Allied Health Institutions and the Security Agencies,” he added.