Nigeria urges emergency response to African swine fever outbreak in Ogun State
Nigerian authorities have called for an emergency response to an African swine fever outbreak in Ogun State, with a senior official urging coordinated action across veterinary bodies, state and federal government, including surveillance, movement controls, biosecurity and farmer compensation measures.
Nigeria has called for an emergency response to an African swine fever (ASF) outbreak in Ogun State, with a senior government official urging coordinated action to contain the disease and protect unaffected pig farms.
Ustace Iyayi, special assistant to Livestock Development Minister Idi Maiha, said the outbreak should be treated as an animal-health emergency requiring coordinated action between veterinary authorities, the Ogun State Government and the Federal Ministry of Livestock Development. Speaking in Abuja, Iyayi outlined immediate priorities including confirming and mapping cases, containing the disease, protecting unaffected farms, communicating with farmers and establishing a recovery mechanism.
"The Ogun outbreak should be viewed as both an emergency and a warning. The immediate objective must be to stop transmission and protect unaffected farms," Iyayi said, according to Feed Business Middle East & Africa.
Available reports indicate that the outbreak has affected pig farms around the Ikangba/Agoro axis. Iyayi called for farm-by-farm epidemiological investigations rather than relying solely on reports of pig deaths.
Iyayi recommended deploying rapid-response veterinary teams to conduct active surveillance on affected and neighbouring farms, investigate unusual pig deaths and collect samples for laboratory testing. He also called for temporary restrictions on the movement of live pigs and carcasses from affected premises and clusters, with controls extending to contaminated equipment and vehicles moving between infected and unaffected farms.
He further recommended that communal slaughter facilities be placed under strict veterinary supervision, with temporary suspension where necessary, citing lessons from the Gudugba outbreak investigation, which identified a communal slaughter facility as a possible transmission pathway.
Iyayi said the response should extend beyond culling and disinfection to include surveillance, biosecurity, movement control, diagnostics, farmer reporting, compensation and recovery finance.
ASF is a severe and highly contagious viral disease affecting domestic and wild pigs, with mortality capable of reaching 100%, according to the report, creating significant risks for pig producers and the wider livestock value chain.
The latest outbreak is described as the third reported in Ogun within a decade. Previous research on the 2019–2021 ASF outbreak, covering a study of 62 farms involving 6,208 pigs across Ogun, Oyo and Lagos, recorded a 60.6% mortality rate. Herd sizes declined by 92.1% following mortality, panic sales and other emergency measures, while financial losses from pig mortality were estimated at N166.26 million (US$101,000 at the average 2019–2021 exchange rate). In Ogun specifically, 1,789 of 2,868 pigs died, representing a mortality rate of 62.4%.
Prepared with AI assistance and reviewed by the editorial team.
