December 24, 2024
Kenyan farmers urged to embrace vaccination for livestock disease prevention
Livestock farmers across Kenya are being encouraged to adopt regular vaccination practices to mitigate losses caused by disease outbreaks.
Kenya's Director of Veterinary Services (DVS), Dr Allan Azegele, has called on farmers to participate in government vaccination initiatives or undertake private vaccinations while sharing the data for record-keeping.
Speaking during a media tour of the Kenya Veterinary Vaccines Production Institute (KEVEVAPI) facility, Dr Azegele emphasised the importance of vaccination and warned against neglecting it. He stated that farmers who fail to vaccinate their livestock face significant risks during outbreaks, including animal deaths and quarantine measures that would prevent the sale of livestock.
The government has identified Foot and Mouth Disease (FMD) for cattle and Peste des Petits Ruminants (PPR) for sheep and goats as priority transboundary diseases for vaccination efforts. FMD vaccination will focus on dairy-producing regions, while PPR efforts will target Arid and Semi-Arid Lands (ASALs).
For PPR, a single dose provides lifetime immunity. In contrast, FMD vaccination must be administered twice a year due to the current vaccine's six-month immunity period. Dr. Azegele explained that Kenya's vaccination strategy follows a stepwise approach. The country is currently at stage two of a five-stage progressive control pathway and advancing to the next stage requires widespread vaccination across the nation.
Once the vaccinations are fully implemented, Kenya aims to achieve disease-free status from the World Organisation for Animal Health (WOAH), allowing the country's livestock products to access global markets.
Dr Azegele noted that vaccination efforts have already reached several regions, including Kitui, where 700,000 doses were deployed, and Wajir, which received 800,000 doses of PPR vaccine. Additional campaigns have been conducted in Embu and Tharaka Nithi counties.
Collaboration with KEVEVAPI is central to the vaccine production and distribution strategy. KEVEVAPI has aligned its production schedule with the government's vaccination rollout plans.
Kenya's livestock population includes approximately 22 million cattle, 23 million sheep, 35 million goats, and 4.3 million camels. The government, through its Bottom-Up Economic Transformation Agenda (BETA), aims to increase livestock's contribution to the Gross Domestic Product (GDP) from 12% to 20%.
To achieve this target, efforts are focused on enhancing productivity across three key value chains: meat, dairy, and leather. In the dairy sector, annual milk production is expected to double from the current five billion litres to 10 billion litres.
Dr Azegele highlighted the role of animal health in achieving these goals. Providing resilient breeds and adequate animal feeds are critical components of the government's strategy to boost productivity in the livestock sector.
KEVEVAPI chairman Prof Kimathi Kigatiira provided insights into the institute's history and its vaccine production capabilities. Established in 1990, KEVEVAPI operates independently and adheres to strict quality standards, including evaluations by the Africa Union Pan Veterinary Vaccine Centre (AU-PANVAC) in Ethiopia.
Prof Kigatiira noted that neighbouring countries, such as Uganda, have sought vaccines from Kenya during outbreaks, underscoring the effectiveness of locally produced vaccines.
KEVEVAPI managing director Alex Sabuni stated that the institute has the capacity for mass vaccine production but has been operating at 50 percent capacity over the past decade due to limited demand. Currently, more than three million doses are ready for rollout.
Sabuni urged Kenyan farmers to embrace vaccination, noting that the vaccines are the same as those used for individual and county-led programmes. He emphasised the institute's upgraded equipment and end-to-end production processes, which ensure high-quality vaccines free from external influences.
- Kenya News Agency
