Food Safety: Veterinary Council to Promote Animal Health

The Veterinary Council of Nigeria, VCN, says it will promote animal health, enhance food safety, and facilitate trade in animals and animal products in the country.

Dr Columba Vakuru, Chief Veterinary Officer of Nigeria, who spoke at a consultative stakeholders meeting on sanitary mandate on Monday in Abuja, said that the council would pave the way for transformation of Animal Health Care delivery.

According to him, the move is to advance veterinary sanitation in Nigeria, build a future where animals thrive, communities prosper, and public health is safeguarded.

He said that the sanitary mandate articulated its priorities, objectives, and strategies to protect the health of animals and humans alike.

“The overall goal is to achieve animal welfare, guarantee food security, ultimately leading to improved public health.’’

The veterinary director urged members to actively engage in the discussions, share thoughts constructively, and add that their inputs would shape the future direction of veterinary services in Nigeria.

He also said that members should reaffirm their commitment to excellence, innovation, and partnership.

Dr Mustapha Mohammed, the Animal Component Officer, said the threat posed by Transboundary Animal Diseases in the sub-region was enormous and had been recognised as the leading cause of low productivity and mortality in the livestock industry.

These threats, he said, were taken into account when the L-PRES project was in the process of development by the Federal Government Preparation Team and other experts.

He added that prevention, control, and possible eradication of four key transboundary diseases were the point of focus for the project under the animal health component.

Also, Dr Adiya Ode, Propcom+’s Country Representative said that robust Public-Private Partnership, PPP, would facilitate the institutionalisation of routine livestock vaccination at the federal, state and local government levels and save costs from annual losses.

Ode said that “the PPP would help to mobilise public and private sector animal health practitioners to work together in delivering sustainable routine animal health vaccination in Nigeria.”

She said this would catalyse subsequent PPP arrangements in livestock disease control and prevention.

“Propcom+ is looking to strengthen last mile delivery of animal health vaccines by replicating and scaling the Community Animal Health Workers and the Veterinary Para-Professionals models,’’ she said.

Ode added that PPP had been piloted in various locations in Nigeria and that the models would benefit largely from the availability of a wholesome PPP framework.

NAN/Shakirat Sadiq