Nigeria has employed massive culling policy
October 20th, 2006
A statistic by the World Health Organization released on Thursday states that Nigeria has culled around 700,000 birds in its effort to stop the outbreaks of avian influenza, which have been reported in the country for the first time in February this year. The announcement was made during a one-day workshop organized in Enugu, south Nigeria. WHO representative Chijioke Osakwe reported that the culling cost 4.44 million dollars to undertake, but that the method is an effective way to prevent the spread of the disease. Nigeria’s poultry industry accounts for 140 million birds, contributing heavily on the country’s Gross Domestic Product. Osakwe appealed to Nigerian officials that the effort is continued, in order to ensure a rapid detection of future bird flu outbreaks.