Veterinary Disease Control

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Category: Verterinary Services

Published on Wednesday, 02 November 2011 14:49

Written by Super User

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The department of veterinary services has placed great attention to animal disease control in order to protect Kenya animal resource base. The focus has been in the control and eradication of notifiable epizootic trans-boundary animal diseases of major economic and public health importance in order to promote sustainable livestock farming and to facilitate trade in animals and animal products. The major epizootic animal diseases include Foot and Mouth Disease (FMD), Contagious Bovine Pleuro-Pneumonia (CBPP), Rinderpest, Rift Valley Fever (RVF), African Swine Fever (ASF), and Lumpy Skin Disease (LSD). Other important diseases are Rabies, Anthrax/Blackquarter, Contagious Caprine Pleuro-Pneumonia and Newcastle Disease.

Kenya is a key market for livestock from the neighbouring countries due to a marked livestock price differential with the neighboring countries. This occasions a heavy net inflow of livestock into the country leading to an in increase in trans-boundary disease challenge and a depression of local producer livestock prices which has acted as a disincentive to investment in the sector. This, coupled with the large scale and massive livestock movement by pastoralists, has inordinately stretched the country veterinary disease control services. The incidence of Trans-boundary diseases in the country remains an effective barrier to trade and has continued to deny livestock access to alternative international markets.

The provision of veterinary services has been constrained by inadequacy of operational funds, shortage of transport and veterinary inputs, poor infrastructure and shortage of veterinary personnel.  Additional constraints include inadequate diagnostic facilities which has led to the upsurge of diseases and spread into previously clean areas.

In order to achieve better results, Strategic measures to prevent entry of exotic and emerging diseases such as avian influenza into Kenya are being put in place, including regional approach to trans-boundary disease control. The department has also enhanced stakeholder participation in disease control as a new approach to manage livestock diseases. A process to establish disease free zones has also been initiated to facilitate export of livestock and livestock products. In addition extensive surveillance and regular vaccinations against notifiable epizootic diseases are carried out in order to improve herd immunity.

Pest control
Pest control has remained a major priority for the department of veterinary services. The focus has mainly been on the tick and tsetse control. Ticks transmit various tick-borne diseases especially the East Coast Fever which cost the country nearly Ksh 855 million per year. During the 1990s, the government handed over the management of dips to farmers but the department has retained the regulatory role of tick control with respect to testing and registration of new acaricides and issuing guidelines on their use. In addition, the department has continued training farmers and dip committees on dip management through extension. Currently, only about 40% of the 5,000 communal cattle dips are operational. The department is encouraging the communities to rehabilitate the remaining dips through the Constituency Development Fund (CDF) and Local Authority Transfer Fund (LATF).
On the other hand, about 51 districts in the country comprising of 25% of the total land mass and 60% of productive rangelands are infested with tsetse flies.  Tsetse transmits trypanosomiasis to cattle and sleeping sickness to humans which lead to huge losses. The department has retained tsetse control as a core function due to the trans-boundary nature of the vector and has embraced participatory approach as a means to ensure sustainability in tsetse control. It is also implementing the PATTEC project which is a six year regional programme aimed at eradicating tse tse in Africa .

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