African Swine Fever Pilot Continues in Barbuda by Shenequa Williams

A team of Veterinary Technicians from the Ministry of Agriculture’s Veterinary and Livestock Division recently travelled to Barbuda to continue sample collection under the ongoing African Swine Fever (ASF) Pilot Project.

All activities were carried out on November 5th and 6th, as part of the Ministry’s ongoing efforts to ensure that the African Swine Fever virus is not present within the local pig population.

The team, led by Alexandria Dowdey, collected seventeen (17) blood samples from pigs belonging to three participating farmers who volunteered to support the initiative. The exercise was supported by Mr. Ridge Taylor/Agriculture Technician with the Barbuda Council.

The Veterinary Team was comprised of the following officers from the Ministry of Agriculture’s Veterinary Division:

• Alexandria Dowdey

• Diahann Gomes

• Omar Nedd

• Shannon Farrell

• Shamika Carmichael

During the visit, the team also met with the Barbuda Council Agriculture Unit for a debriefing session to discuss findings from the sampling activity. Several recommendations were made to guide future monitoring and disease prevention measures.

The African Swine Fever Pilot is a collaboration between the Inter-American Institute for Cooperation on Agriculture (IICA) and the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) in support of the Ministry of Agriculture’s priority actions toward achieving food and nutritional security.

The ASF Pilot Project continues to play an important role in safeguarding Antigua and Barbuda’s livestock industry and strengthening the nation’s agricultural resilience.