It’s no longer news that bird flu has resurfaced in Nigeria,
but it has spread to 26 states and the Federal Capital Territory, with over 3.5
million birds affected, the Federal Government has said.
The Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development, Chief
Audu Ogbeh, said that the first outbreak of bird flu in Nigeria was reported in
2006 and spanned through 2008, but was controlled and eradicated through
concerted efforts facilitated by the availability of resources from a World
Bank-sponsored project and support from the country’s development partners.
The minister said, “Almost a decade later, precisely in
December 2014, the disease reoccurred in a commercial poultry farm and a live
bird market in Kano and Lagos states, respectively. The current status of the
disease in the country is quite alarming; it has now affected 26 states and the
FCT, with over 3.5 million birds culled so far.
“Recently, a new strain of the bird flu virus (H5N8) was
reported in Kano. The new strain is believed to be very pathogenic and more
devastating to poultry species and, therefore, it may further add to the burden
of the H5N1 strain that is currently circulating in the country.
“The disease is transboundary in nature and also
trade-limiting; some of our neighbouring countries have proposed to ban poultry
and poultry products from Nigeria. This may undesirably lead to an egg glut in
the country.”
Ogbeh stated that there were already huge and unacceptable
losses in the poultry industry and the nation as a whole, and urged the
agriculture commissioners of the various states to retrace their steps in order
to provide safe food for Nigerians as well as ensure national self-sufficiency
in food production.
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