Veterinary Experts Discover Outbreak Of Disease In South West

OpenLife Nigeria reports that the conference of Southwest Directors of Veterinary services has confirmed the outbreak of two Transboundary Animal Diseases (TADs) in the region namely the African Swine fever in pigs and Anthrax in herbivores.

A release signed by the Chairman of the conference, Dr. Taiwo Jolaoso stated that TADs are contagious epidemic diseases of livestock that have the potential to spread rapidly across the globe with negative socio-economic and public health consequences, and require collaboration of different countries to curtail.

The statement further said that all affected farms and slaughter slabs have been decontaminated and disinfected while modalities relating to issuance of movement permit in the region are being worked out.

The release added that public awareness would be intensified among high risk groups such as butchers, hunters, animal product processors and marketers, as well as livestock farmers to further check the spread.

The conference advised all the pig farmers to improve on their biosecurity measures and refrain from stocking their farms and for the Anthrax they implored all stakeholders to avoid contact with sick or dead animals especially if it oozes blood from the orifices while such cases should be reported to the nearest veterinary office

South West Overview

Clearly, the South West is one of the six geopolitical zones of Nigeria representing both a geographic and political region of the country’s southwest.

It comprises six States – Ekiti, Lagos, Ogun, Ondo, Osun, and Oyo.

The zone stretches along the Atlantic seaboard from the international border with Benin Republic in the west to the South South in the east with the North Central to the north.

The South West is split with the Central African mangroves in the coastal far south while the major inland ecoregions are the Nigerian lowland forests ecoregion in the south and east along with the Guinean forest–savanna mosaic ecoregion in the drier northwest.

The weather conditions vary between the two distinct seasons in Nigeria; the rainy season (March – November) and the dry season (November – February). The dry season is also the bringer of the Harmattan dust; cold dry winds from the northern deserts blow into the southern regions around this time.

Culturally, the vast majority of the zone falls within Yorubaland–the indigenous cultural homeland of the Yoruba people, a group which makes up the largest ethnic percentage of the southwestern population.

Economically, the South West’s urban areas–mainly the cities of Lagos and Ibadan–contributes greatly to the Nigerian economy while rural areas lag behind.

The region has a population of about 47 million people, around 22% of the total population of the country.
Lagos is the most populous city in the South West as well as the most populous city in Nigeria and the second most populous city in Africa.

The metropolis and its inner suburbs, together called the Lagos Metropolis Area, form the eighth largest metropolitan area in the world with about 21 million people.

Other large southwestern cities include (in order by population) Ibadan, Ogbomosho, Ikorodu, Akure, Abeokuta, Oyo, Ifẹ, Ondo City, Ado Ekiti, Iseyin, Sagamu, Badagry, Ilesa, Obafemi Owode, Osogbo, Ikare and Owo.