By Yang Ater Yang
Lakes State’s Ministry of Animal Resources, Fisheries and Tourism with support from the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization (UNFAO) has started a cattle vaccination drive targeting over 95,000 cattle.
The Caretaker Minister of Animal Resources, Fisheries and Tourism who is also the Minister of Cooperative and Rural Development Philip Taban Chir appreciated the UNFAO for the support.
Taban ordered the Community Animal’s Health Workers (CAHW) vaccinators to quickly vaccinate the targeted number within two weeks and ensuring that all livestock must be vaccinated to eliminate diseases affecting livestock in Lakes state.
Request cattle keepers to bring their cattle closer to accessible cattle camps for vaccination early because the rainy season is now approaching with lots of livestock diseases.
The Director General in the ministry of Animals resources, Fisheries and Tourism, Gabriel Makuac Agregy said the community animal health workers should divide into groups, others are going to do vaccination in the villages to vaccinate dogs, donkeys, sheep, goats and poultry and other vaccinators remain in cattle camps to complete the 5,047 household target in each county across Lakes state, he added that the UNFAO delayed the vaccination campaign this year, it is supposed to begin in December or January.
The representative of United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization, (UNFAO) Dr. Marco Makur said the vaccination project is targeting over 95,000 livestock in eight counties across Lakes state.
He explained that, “we provide the vaccines which prevents the various diseases such as Hemorrhagic Septicemia (HS), Black Quarter (BQ) Contagious Caperone Pleuropneumonia (CCPP) and pox for small ruminants.
He explained that the purpose of administering the vaccines is to improve the animal’s health and livestock production and overall, it will increase livelihood and nutrition of households.
UNFAO is directly implementing the project with the ministry of animal’s resources, fisheries and Tourism vaccination in Rumbek Central and Yirol West County to target 95,000 cattle, (50,000) thousand goats, 200 dogs, 200 Donkeys 100 poultry per each county.
Other counties are given to implementing partners such as Norwegian People’s Aid (NPA) Rumbek East, Wulu, Yirol East, Cuei-bet, and Awerial countiesand International Committee of Red Cross (ICRC) given Rumbek North County.
He said the management of UNFAO is continuing to support community animal’s health workers to provide them training and the incentive to encourage their works.
“The objective of UNFAO is to make sure that our livestock are healthy to produce good high quality milk to bring enormous economic benefits as in market oriented livestock venture to overcome food insecurity within the community,” he said adding “when livestock are healthy the milk production will improve in the communities”.
He urged the community to allow their cattle to be vaccinated be as a way to protect animals to reduce expenses of buying the veterinary drugs in the market.
In his part, the pastoralists’ representative Makoi Kocdong thanked the government and their partners for caring about “our animal’s health because since the vaccination begun many diseases are eradicated such as Black quarter, hemorrhagic and septicemia among others”.
