ZHUL-QI’DA 25, 1429 A.H.
THURSDAY NOVEMBER 20, 2008
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FG builds N57m quarantine stations at 2 airports
The federal government will construct quarantine stations valued at N57 million at two of the nation's international airports to beef up the surveillance of imported animals.
Dr Abba Sayyadi Ruma, minister of agriculture and water resources, disclosed this in Abuja in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN).
He said that two stables of three blocks of 10 rooms each would be constructed at the Mallam Aminu Kano International Airport in Kano, and at the Nnamdi Azikwe International Airport, Abuja.
He said that the stables would be constructed to scale up quarantine services at the airports in line with the procedures recommended by the World Animal Health Organisation (OIE) of which Nigeria is a signatory.
Speaking in a separate interview with NAN, Dr Junaid Maina, Director, Livestock and Pest Control at the ministry, said that the stables were some of the facilities needed by the department.
He disclosed that Nigeria does not have such facility for the quarantine of animals and that the proposed stables would be used for the quarantine, surveillance and screening of imported animals.
The director said this was necessary in order to detect infectious diseaseguard against its spread before the animals were released to their owners.
Maina said that though the nation's airports had facilities for the quarantine of animals, plants, fish and poultry products, under the National Agricultural Quarantine Services (NAQS), it was still not enough. ``The stables are necessary to reposition our airports and meet the challenges of the 21st century," he said.
The director said government had strictly enforced the rules guiding the importation of animals, fish and plants into the country.
He, however, added that the ban on the importation of poultry products was still in force.
``The rule says you cannot import any animal, plant and fish into the country without getting import approval from me as the National Chief Veterinary Officer until after furnishing me with adequate information on the animal, fish and plant and their destination,” he said.
Maina said that it would be difficult for importers to import sick animals into the country. He said, ``as the nation's Chief Delegate at the OIE, I was always alerted on the health situation of animals globally.
