Butuan City forms ASF task force

Butuan City forms ASF task force Regional News

By Nora C. Lanuza

It can be recalled that the city has created an ASF task force through Executive Order No. 009, series of 2019 in October last year signed by mayor Ronnie Vicente Lagnada. The said task force is composed of four teams to focus on surveillance and monitoring; quarantine; information, education, and communication (IEC) campaign; and disease updates and policy review. BUTUAN CITY - Following the announcement of the entry of African Swine Fever (ASF) case in Mindanao particularly in Davao Occidental on January 31, the Butuan City ASF Task Force convened for an emergency meeting on Tuesday at the City Mayor’s Conference Room to discuss contingency plan for the prevention of the local swine population.

During the meeting presided by city administrator Reynante Desiata, action plans of each of the teams were presented to properly address and prevent the local swine from being infected by the ASF disease.

Desiata cited the important role of the ASF Task Force as it will help to properly monitor and address the impending threat of the ASF to the local swine population of the city. He said the local government through the City Veterinarian Office will coordinate with nearby local government units for contingency measures.

Also, City Veterinarian, Dr. Mancio Danilo Alegado and team will conduct monitoring and even help law enforcers especially those who were assigned in the checkpoints before entering the city proper identify or even check entry of swine, swine meat and other possible carriers of the ASF.

Part of the immediate actions of the task force to be taken by the surveillance and monitoring team are the inventory of backyard and commercial farms; conduct of surveillance and monitoring of piggeries of both backyard and commercial; conduct early detection of infection in collaboration with the Department of Agriculture 13; monitor animal health programs in all backyard and commercial farms; monitor meat and meat by-products sold in the market and food establishments; conduct of antemortem and post-mortem inspection in the slaughterhouse; and to conduct a continuous and

Regional News stricter monitoring of all national Meat Inspection Service accredited Cold Storage Warehouse of the city.

The Quarantine Team also prepares to set-up checkpoints in all the strategic areas on both entry and exit points of the city; to hire personnel to man the quarantine areas/checkpoints; and implement a strict quarantine in all airports and seaports.

During the emergency meeting, the IEC campaign team also identified immediate actions to employ this month, like the conduct of the IEC campaign in all barangays targeting the semi-commercial and commercial swine raisers and barangay officials and its backyard swine raisers; distribute ASF campaign materials; and conduct of ASF-related IEC campaigns among local radio stations and different social media platforms.

The disease updates and policy review team also suggested the regulation of swill feeding especially in urban hotels and restaurants; enforcement of the quarantine measures; creation of quick response team; strict implementation of the zoning of 1-7-10 protocol during occurrence in the locality in managing, containing and controlling the suspected disease.

Because of the important role and functions of the task force, the group also agreed to possibly conduct a monthly meeting to appraise each member on the status of the ASF. (NCLM/PIA Caraga)