Bird Flu Outbreak in Kano Affects 223,695 Chickens in 40 Farms

By Ibrahim Shuaibu

The Kano State branch of the Poultry Farmers Association of Nigeria has decried the loss of over N500 million following the outbreak of Avian Influenza also known as bird flu in the state.

Speaking with journalists in Kano yesterday, the Chairman of the association, Mr. Umar Kibiya Usman, said they had incurred huge losses in the recent outbreak of the virus.

Usman said 223,695 chicken had been confirmed affected and depopulated, noting that each of the chicken costs not less than N1,800, and the amount of the loss is over N402 million.

He explained that apart from the confirmed number of chickens affected, which costs over N402 million, there are thousands that are yet to be confirmed, stressing that the amount of money loss could be over N500 million.

Usman said: “223,695 chicken have been affected so far. They have been depopulated. This is worth over N402 million. There are also some that are not confirmed. They run into hundreds of thousands. So, the amount of the loss is over N500 million.

“We, therefore, appeal to the state government to be up and doing to mitigate the outbreak of this disease. We know that the government is doing its best, but we appeal for more.

“The government should further enlighten poultry farmers on how to protect their birds from being affected by this disease. Fumigation and disinfection should be sustained at the live-bird markets and other
places.”

Meanwhile, the Kano State Ministry of Agriculture and Natural Resources had confirmed the outbreak, saying it is up and doing to check the situation.Confirming the number of birds affected, The Director of Veterinary Services in the ministry, Dr. Bello Bala, confirmed that 223,695 chickens were depopulated.

He said the ministry got the report of the index case from a man who brought his ailing backyard bird for diagnosis, adding that when its sample was taken to National Veterinary Research Institute in Jos, Plateau State, it returned positive of the Avian Influenza.