The Ministry of Food & Agriculture (MoFA) has confirmed an outbreak of bird flu in the country.
The incidence, which occurred sometime last week, has led to the killing of over 11,000 affected birds in Boankra, near Ejisu in the Ashanti Region, and Nkawkaw in the Eastern Region.
Confirming the outbreak to the media, Dr Boi Kikimoto, Head of Public Health & Food Safety, Veterinary Services of the Ministry of Food and Agriculture (MoFA), said samples of the virus had been sent to the world reference laboratory of the World Animal Health Organisation in Pandova, Italy, for further tests.
He explained that it is a standard procedure because that is the only place with the certified laboratory to test the virus and “secondly, they will help provide the palindromic sequence of the bird flu gene for us.”
Temporary Ban
Meanwhile, the Ministry of Food & Agriculture has placed a temporary ban on the movement of poultry and poultry products in the Greater Accra, Ashanti and Eastern Regions.
The National Director of Veterinary Services at the Agric Ministry, Dr Kingsley Micky Aryee, said affected farms have also been quarantined to avert a spread of the virus.
“We have destroyed all the animals on the farm, we have buried, we have covered, we have done disinfection, but not all the disinfection. We have to do at least three disinfections. We have also placed the ban on animals from the areas from both farms that are affected or not affected,” he disclosed.
Previous Outbreaks
Ghana recorded a nationwide outbreak of bird flu in 2015, leading to the killing of 76,326.
In 2016, more than 25,000 birds were destroyed between January and July as a result of the avian influenza (bird flu) on poultry farms.
In all, 13 farms in the country were affected, out of which seven were recorded in the Greater Accra Region.
By Jamila Akweley Okertchiri