Govt building livestock vaccine facility for local & regional demand

…technical team gives green light, private sector backs project

In a bold move towards realizing the 25 by 2025 food security initiative, Guyana will soon be producing vaccines for not only local livestock, but for livestock in the region. This announcement was made by President Dr Irfaan Ali.
During a discussion with Region Five residents about starting an agri-business, President Ali was asked whether the government would supply livestock vaccines. He responded that the government is not only supporting the ongoing vaccine drive but is also constructing a facility to produce local livestock vaccines.
“We have exciting news for you guys. Right now, we’re supporting the vaccination prorgamme. But let me tell you. (We’re considering) people who don’t have an understanding of the intensity of what is going on. As we’re speaking, we’re finalizing now the building of a facility in Guyana, for the production of vaccines for livestock. All the vaccines,” the President said.
The vision gets bigger, however. According to the President, the government will also be looking to produce livestock vaccines for the Caribbean by next year. This is particularly significant, as Guyana has been at the forefront of the 25 by 2025 initiative, which seeks to reduce food imports into the region by 25 per cent by next year.
“We’ve brought in a full technical team already. The assessment is finished. They’ve identified a start-up area. We’ve brought the private sector on board. They’re bringing investments in. and very soon, we’ll be producing all our livestock, vaccination needs, right in Guyana. And by the end of next year, if we do it right, we’ll produce for all the Caribbean,” President Ali added.
At a poultry symposium last year, the government had announced that it would be covering the costs of livestock vaccines for farmers. This had translated to the government committing to purchase $29 Million worth of vaccines, during the symposium which was held by the Guyana Livestock Development Authority (GLDA) at the Arthur Chung Convention Centre (AACC).
“We’ve committed to pay for the vaccines that are needed…[about] $29 million,” Ali said. “That investment by the Government will avoid the $6 increase per chick to be passed onto the farmers.”
While the President did not specify which vaccines are being purchased, GLDA Chief Executive Officer (CEO) Dr Dwight Waldron had noted that contamination and disease outbreak is a rising concern across the markets.
“Bird Flu caused a significant economic and social impact in Europe and the United States (US). In Europe only, they lost in excess of 50 million birds. In the United States, [they lost] in excess of 40 million birds,” Waldron said.
Bird flu is a disease that can spread across entire flocks of domestic birds within days, through birds’ droppings and saliva, or through contaminated feed and water. So significant is the threat that in May of last year, GLDA had declared that it was no longer allowing the importation of poultry or poultry products due to “sanitary conditions.”
Another health threat identified by Waldron at the symposium is Inclusion Body Hepatitis, a disease of young broilers caused by fowl adenoviruses. However, he had said that GLDA has been able to begin viral typing.
Viral typing is a way of identifying specific strains of microorganisms, such as viruses, by looking at their genetic material in a laboratory setting in order to determine the source of foodborne outbreaks.
In addition to the procurement of vaccines, President Ali had also noted that the Government was also looking to establish a Project Implementation Unit (PUI) that will, among other tasks, seek to develop a zoning system to allow poultry farmers to work collectively and better manage their livestock.
Earlier this year, the government had collaborated with the Caribbean Development Bank (CDB) to launch two critical projects to enhance traceability for food products and achieve export certification for bovine (cattle) and other small animals. This was done in an effort to guard against food-related diseases.
Execution of the “Development of a Food Products Traceability System for Pineapples and Leafy Greens in Guyana” and the “Bovine Tuberculosis (BTB) and Bovine Brucellosis (BB) to Improve Market Access” projects will be done through funding from grants from the Bank’s Special Funds Resources totaling a whopping €636,000 or approximately $143.17 million. (G3)