Anthrax Outbreak: We have been able to contain it – Ghana Veterinary Service assures

Dr Benjamin Kissi Sasu, the Risk Communications Manager at the Ghana Veterinary Service, has announced that over 150,000 livestock have been vaccinated in the Upper East Region.

This follows the outbreak of anthrax disease in the region in June 2023.

Due to the outbreak, the Regional Public Health Emergency Management Committee placed a ban on the movement of ruminants.

They also banned the slaughtering, sale, and consumption of ruminants.

Updating the public on the measures to control the disease, Dr Kissi Sasu said “So far, so good.”

“Looking at the data and the participation of the community, the various districts have now cooperated, and we have had a good number of animal vaccinations ongoing. Currently, we are not seeing any signs [of anthrax], and we hope it will keep up. So yes, we have been able to contain it in that way,” he assured.

Meanwhile, the Upper East Regional Minister, Stephen Yakubu, has stated that the ban on the movement of ruminants will be lifted after 70 percent of animals have been vaccinated in the region.

“Per the advice of experts and scientists, if we are able to attain the 70 percent vaccination coverage, then it will be safe for the ban to be lifted for people to return to their normal lives,” he stressed.

On June 2, 2023, one person reportedly died of anthrax disease after consuming the carcass of a dead cow in Bansi in Binduri District in the Upper East Region.

Currently, 11 out of 15 Municipal and District Assemblies (MDAs) in the region have confirmed animal deaths with anthrax cases recorded in three districts.