By CESAR JOLITO III
Varying protocols among local government units (LGUs) have resulted in inconsistencies that could hamper efforts to contain African swine fever (ASF) in Negros Island Region (NIR) as the Department of Agriculture (DA) is set to establish a regional task force to strengthen coordination and standardize control measures against the hog disease.
DA-NIR Executive Director Engineer Jose Albert Barrogo said the task force on ASF will formulate unified protocols to be adopted by all localities in the region because LGUs have already implemented their own ASF control measures.
Barrogo announced the DA’s plan following an emergency meeting with the Negros Occidental Provincial Veterinary Office and representatives from several national government agencies.
Barrogo said participating agencies were committed to work together in enhancing the region’s response to the continuing ASF threat.
At the provincial level, the existing ASF task force will be reconstituted instead of creating a new body.
To address this, Barrogo said he will convene the Regional Management Committee for an emergency meeting next week to formally establish the regional ASF task force and begin harmonizing biosecurity and disease prevention guidelines across the region.
The move is expected to improve coordination among provincial, city and municipal governments as authorities continue efforts to protect the region’s swine industry from the spread of ASF.
ASF has already affected 13 LGUs in Negros Occidental, resulting in the deaths of 2,130 hogs as of Tuesday, June 30, the Provincial Veterinary Office (PVO) said.
This is equivalent to 3.81 percent of the province’s total hog inventory of 329,531.
Despite the outbreak, actual ASF mortalities account for only 0.65 percent of Negros Occidental’s total hog population, indicating that the disease remains confined to a limited portion of the province.
Meanwhile, the Negros Oriental PVO earlier confirmed five ASF cases in La Libertad town, prompting intensified containment measures and heightened surveillance in four other municipalities./CCJ, WDJ