Bird flu Hits 24 States, Kills 3.3million Birds

According to the latest data obtained from the Department of Veterinary and Disease Control of the Federal Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development, 96 local government areas have recorded outbreak of bird flu while estimated 2.5 million birds have been depopulated and buried.

Katsina, Adamawa Bayelsa and Ebonyi are the latest states affected by bird flu, bringing the total number of states affected since last year to 24.

Director-General, Poultry Association of Nigeria (PAN) Onallo Akpa told Daily Trust on Monday, January, 18,  that the nation has recorded 556 positive cases noting that 12 live-bird markets across the country are also affected by the current outbreaks.

Akpa stated that as at January 16, the total number of birds that tested positive to the virus is over 2.3 million, adding that 2 million birds have already been depopulated and field activities by veterinary officers across the country was ongoing.

Akpa said PAN has sent out updates on the current state of bird flu to all the states to enable farmers step up bio-security measures in their farms. Daily Trust gathered that in Kano over 80,000 chickens infected with Avian Influenza have been killed as disease spread to 22 additional farms.