The Livestock Productivity and Resilience Support Project (L-PRES) has announced plans to vaccinate 1.4 million animals in 2025 to enhance disease prevention and promote both animal and public health.
The National Project Coordinator (NPC) of L-PRES, Sanusi Abubakar, disclosed this during a five-day Training of Trainers (ToT) workshop for animal health officers, in Abuja.
The workshop, themed “Biosecurity, Herd Health, Udder Health, and Integrated Pest Control Management,” aimed to equip participants with the technical knowledge needed to effectively deliver animal healthcare services at the grassroots level.
Abubakar explained that the training was part of broader efforts by the World Bank-supported project to enhance biosecurity and prevent disease outbreaks in livestock populations across the country.
He noted that participants were drawn from the 20 states where the project was currently operational, as well as from the national office.
“They are expected to replicate the training at the local level to strengthen animal health services.
“We are training health officers because L-PRES, being a World Bank project, adheres to global standards.
“We’re investing in infrastructure, including veterinary hospitals, so it’s crucial to prevent diseases before they occur. Biosecurity is one key approach,” he said.
Abubakar encouraged the trainees to see the programme as a strategic effort to ensure that knowledge gained would be passed on to livestock farmers, also known as livestock value chain operators.
“As ToT participants, you’re expected to break down these technical concepts into simple terms for farmers, making the practices easy to understand and adopt.
“The training covers several key areas, including udder health management, farm biosecurity, integrated pest management, and overall herd health.
“These topics were deliberately selected to address the challenges encountered within the livestock value chains in various state clusters,” Abubakar added.
He emphasised that significant efforts were being made under L-PRES to reduce morbidity and mortality in livestock due to disease outbreaks, aligning with the value chain priorities of participating states.
