- Nigeria’s Federal Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development (FMARD) on Monday confirmed a case of Anthrax disease in a mixed livestock farm in Niger State.
The confirmation was contained in a statement jointly signed by Nigeria’s Chief Veterinary Officer, Dr Columba T. Vakuru and the Director-General, Nigeria Centre for Disease Control and Prevention, Dr Ifedayo Adetifa.
According to the statement, the identified case is the first since the confirmation of anthrax outbreak in Ghana in earlier June.
Sudden death of 8 animals was reported to authorities on 13th of July, 2023, and investigation of samples collected at the National Veterinary Research Institute, NVRI, Vom in Plateau State returned a positive case, the statement says.
The statement further revealed that, “further investigation is also ongoing to trace the source of the infection and to identify the spread to other farms and humans.
“Though human exposure has been reported, there are no reports so far of human symptoms or mortality.
“The FMARD and the Nigeria Centre for Disease Control and Prevention (NCDC) are currently working closely with the Niger State Ministries of Health and Agriculture to identify, isolate and follow up all exposed persons.
Government Assurance
The general public is assured that ” the Government of Nigeria, through the FMARD and NCDC and other one-health stakeholders, have put measures in place to ensure any outbreak of Anthrax in Nigeria is quickly detected, controlled, and contained
Warning
Meanwhile, the government through the statement has warned the general public against the slaughtering (at home), consumption of sick and dead animals. Cases of sudden death should be reported to the nearest veterinary authorities or the State Ministry of Agriculture.
