To implement strict measures to prevent animal diseases in Vietnam

To implement strict measures to prevent animal diseases in Vietnam (Internet image)

To implement strict measures to prevent animal diseases in Vietnam

Amidst the increasingly complex developments of various animal diseases, especially Avian Influenza (AI), Rabies, African Swine Fever (ASF), Foot-and-Mouth Disease (FMD), and Lumpy Skin Disease (LSD), on June 16, 2024, the Prime Minister of Vietnam, Pham Minh Chinh, issued Official Telegram 58/CD-TTg directing Ministries, sectors, and People's Committees of provinces and centrally-run cities to intensify the implementation of synchronized, decisive, and effective measures to prevent animal diseases in livestock and poultry.

To thoroughly and promptly implement the Prime Minister's directive in Official Telegram 58/CD-TTg, on June 17, 2024, the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development (MARD) organized a conference to discuss measures to prevent animal diseases in livestock and poultry for the last months of 2024.

The Ministry of Agriculture and MARD, in Official Dispatch 4687/BNN-TY dated July 02, 2024, requested the Chairpersons of the People's Committees of the provinces and cities to allocate and prioritize resources and directly instruct Departments, sectors, and local authorities at all levels to firmly and synchronously implement measures to control and prevent animal diseases. In particular, attention should be paid to promptly implementing the following measures:

(1) For localities with ongoing animal disease outbreaks

- Announce district and provincial-level epidemics and organize epidemic control in accordance with regulations, ensuring thorough handling of outbreak sites, preventing new outbreaks from emerging, and preventing prolonged disease persistence; require accountability for entities and individuals who delay advising, directing, or implementing epidemic control as required.

- Promptly approve and allocate funds, chemicals, vaccines, and support local district and commune authorities and specialized agencies to: (i) Organize epidemic control, handle the culling of infected, suspected, and disease-caused dead animals; (ii) Promptly detect, prevent, and strictly handle cases of selling, trading, and transporting infected or suspected infected animals, and discarding dead animals into the environment to prevent disease spread and pollution; (iii) Temporarily cease animal slaughtering and tighten control over animal slaughtering in epidemic areas in accordance with regulations; (iv) Organize thorough sanitization, disinfection (using chemicals, lime powder, etc.) at infected farms, villages, communes, and high-risk areas; (v) Purchase vaccines for focused vaccination campaigns around outbreak zones and in high-risk areas, especially against AI, Rabies, ASF, FMD, LSD, etc.; (vi) Regularly disseminate information on disease status and measures for disease prevention and control.

(2) For all localities nationwide

- Guide farmers to strictly apply daily hygiene and disinfection measures using lime powder and chemicals in and around animal farms; ensure and implement full hygiene and disinfection procedures for farms with animals mandatorily culled due to disease to eliminate pathogens and prevent disease spread.

- Accurately inventory the total livestock population, assess disease conditions, pathogen circulation, and disease risk, and recommend vaccination based on the Veterinary Department's guidance for mass vaccination in the second half of 2024.

- Actively monitor disease conditions in livestock to promptly issue warnings and handle newly detected small-scale outbreaks; strictly handle non-reporting of disease, selling, slaughtering of infected or suspected animals, and discarding dead animals into the environment causing disease spread.

- Promptly and accurately report disease conditions, surveillance results, vaccination, and facility management data, and rigorously follow reporting protocols on the Vietnam Animal Health Information System - VAHIS.

- Develop disease-safe breeding facilities and regions, including safe zones for animal and animal product exports.

- Intensify quarantine management, monitoring animal transport and animal product movement, and control animal slaughtering; particularly prevent and strictly handle illegal animal and animal product transport cases.

- Review and adjust local animal disease prevention and control plans for 2024 based on actual conditions.

- Efficiently inform and educate livestock owners and communities about the risks and impacts of severe animal diseases; strictly handle cases of disease concealment and delayed reporting that lead to disease spread.

- Establish working groups for guiding, inspecting, and urging animal disease prevention and control efforts in key livestock and disease areas, particularly checking and ensuring proper vaccine administration, proactive disease monitoring, and prompt identification and control of outbreaks.

- Rapidly strengthen and enhance the capacity of the veterinary system at all levels as mandated by the Veterinary Law of 2015, and directives from the Politburo, the Secretariat, the National Assembly, the Government of Vietnam, and the Prime Minister of Vietnam to ensure sufficient resources for effective animal disease prevention and control, and the prevention of illegal animal and animal product transport.

- Promote IT application, digital transformation, and administrative reforms in animal disease prevention and control, quarantine, slaughtering control, and veterinary drug management.

More details can be found in Official Dispatch 4687/BNN-TY dated July 02, 2024.

Tran Trong Tin

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