Crr — The Central River Region (CRR) Agriculture and Natural Resources group, in collaboration with the regional Agriculture directorate recently concluded a two-day community sensitisation campaign on the Contagious Bovine Pleuro-Pneumonia (CBPP) cattle disease in CRR north.

The sensitisation was conducted in the ten wards; namely, Ballangharr, Kaur, Njau, Panchang, Chamen, Nyanga Bantang, Kuntaur, Banni, Karantaba and Sami Pachonki, all in CRR north.

Speaking at the event, Madou Camara, the focal person of the livestock services in CRR north, said CBPP is invariably introduced into a herd by contact with an infected animal; a transmission, he said, that occurs from direct, close and repeated contacts between diseased and healthy animals.

He further explained that the causative agent is present in liquid droplets in breath and urine, adding that transmission is accelerated by close crowding of cattle and that outbreaks are more common and extensive when cattle are housed or have been transported by truck and trekked on foot in groups.

Camara said that cattle that are infected and don't show any symtoms of the diseasecan easily be a source of transmission of the disease to the rest of the herd. He noted that pastoral herds are especially significant since they may contain many chronically infected animals.

For his part, Amadou Jallow, the livestock officer, stated that CBPP is one of the great plagues, which continues to devastate cattle herds in Africa. He pointed out that the CBPP is a serious threat to livestock production in Sub-Saharan Africa and some Asian countries.

The chief of Niani, Alhaji Pierre Bah and the chief of Sami, Alhaji Kebbo Leigh both called on cattle owners to control the movements of their animals until after the massive vaccination campaign is conducted.