NEW: FAO, Govt launch emergency project to fight livestock diseases

Online Reporter

THE Food and Agriculture Organisation of the United Nations (FAO) in conjunction with the Government is hosting a one-day emergency indaba in Harare on Thursday to launch a project meant to discuss possible ways to mitigate livestock diseases that have been bedevilling the sector.

The meeting will run under the theme “Mitigating the impact of livestock diseases in Zimbabwe”.

In a joint statement, FAO and the Department of Veterinary Services under the Ministry of Lands, Agriculture, Fisheries, Water and Rural Development said tick-borne diseases account for over two-thirds of cattle mortalities in Zimbabwe.

“Tick-borne diseases account for over two-thirds of cattle mortalities in Zimbabwe, according to the Department of Veterinary Services.

“The national inception meeting for stakeholders is meant to launch an emergency project addressing the effects of the devastating Theileriosis disease on the livestock sector in Zimbabwe and enhancing early detection capacity for the highly contagious foot-and-mouth disease serotype O,” read the statement.

Funding will also be provided to intervene in key mitigatory interventions.

“In this respect, holistic interventions within the framework of the funding have therefore been proposed to address the highlighted challenges.”

The interventions are expected to see rehabilitation of dip tanks, as well as enhancing the capacity for disease surveillance, prevention, early warning and rapid response in the face of outbreaks by rolling out real-time disease reporting applications to key veterinary personnel and training personnel on sampling for laboratory diagnosis.