Gombe State Governor Muhammadu Inuwa Yahaya yesterday launched the federal government’s 2022 nationwide free mass vaccination against Transboundary Animal Diseases (TADs).
The vaccination campaign for the North East sub-region began in the Dadin-Kowa community of Yamaltu/Deba Local Government Area of Gombe State.
The governor stated that the exercise demonstrated the government’s commitment to improving animal health and preventing setbacks in livestock management.
He warned that TADs have a high mortality rate and are contagious, and that they can have negative socioeconomic and public health consequences.
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He urged pastoralists and other stakeholders to work with veterinary personnel to ensure the exercise’s success.
Earlier, Dr. Mohammed Mahmood Abubakar, Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development, stated that the vaccination campaign was launched to ensure an improved livestock sub-sector.
Dr Maimuna Habib, Nigeria’s Chief Veterinary Officer, said the vaccination was for TADs such as Contagious Bovine Pleuropneumonia (CBPP), Foot and Mouth Disease (FMD), Peste Des Petits Ruminants (PPR), and Newcastle Disease (NCD).
He stated that the federal government had provided over 2,000,000 doses of the vaccines to the six states in the North East Zone.
The minister went on to say that vaccination was critical because livestock production was a major source of income in Nigeria, employing roughly 70% of the country’s population.
