A
major progress has been made on the fight against communicable diseases from
animals to human being such as the rift valley and Ebola, which in recent years
have posed threats in some parts of the SADC and East African region.
This
was said in Morogoro region by researchers and scientists from Tanzania,
Malawi, Zambia, South Africa and UK, who are meeting in the region to strategize
scientific ways of preventing the diseases from animals to human being and vice
versa.
Citing
an example of lift valley disease, a lecturer of Sokoine University of
agriculture, Gerald Msinzo said that researchers were working on several samples
from animals, testing them in laboratories so that the results would be used to
establish practical solutions for the diseases.
For
his part, a researcher, Jo Lines of UK, explained that so far significant
progress has been made in malaria which is one of the area of research.
He
said that other diseases such as Ebola were also been worked on, and that he
was optimistic that the research findings would bear desired fruits.
Dalie
Wesseles, a researcher from South Africa was on the view that there was a need
to train focal points in different parts of the region and set up guiding principles
on how best they can deal with the diseases.
Livestock
constitutes an important natural resource of the Southern African Region, with
over 60 percent of the region’s total land area suitable for livestock farming.
Although the
livestock sector offers the region a unique opportunity for accelerated
economic growth in the region, in some areas, diversification and increased
poor animal disease control and husbandry, are turning the opportunities into
threats.
Post a Comment