State on high alert to prevent rinderpest from entering Kenya from Tanzania
The government is on high alert following the outbreak of rinderpest disease in Tanzania, Agriculture CS Willy Bett said yesterday.
The disease is highly contagious and deadly. It afflicts cattle and other cloven-hoofed animals,
Bett said veterinarians have been stationed along the border to monitor animal movement and the disease. He spoke on the sidelines of the second intergovern- mental forum on the agriculture sector at the White Sands Hotel, Mombasa.
The problem was raised by Tana River Governor Hussein Dado, who asked the national government to explain the measures it is taking to prevent the disease from entering Kenya.
Dado said the disease might gain entry through the migration of wild animals. He said the World Bank was helping with a vaccination programme.