The Prevent Event, held on October 1st in Kigali, Rwanda, united key stakeholders in Africa’s poultry sector to discuss ways to enhance sustainability and resilience within the industry. Hosted by Ceva Santé Animale and GALVmed, the event emphasized collaboration, innovation, and disease prevention as critical components of a thriving poultry value chain.
Strengthening the Poultry Value Chain
The forum highlighted the need for a more structured and efficient poultry value chain across Africa. Recommendations included:
- Interprofessional Organizations: Establishing coordinating bodies like Ivory Coast’s IPRAVI to integrate breeding, production, and distribution.
- Inclusive Contract Farming: Expanding initiatives such as Kenya’s KPF and Kenchic, which provide farmers with inputs, training, and guaranteed markets.
- Technology & Innovation: Investing in local feed production, advanced poultry genetics, and digital solutions to enhance productivity.
- Gender Inclusion: Empowering women in poultry farming through training and financial support to foster equitable growth.
- Education & Capacity Building: Scaling up training programs like Ethiopia’s postgraduate poultry medicine initiatives to bridge knowledge gaps.
Combating Avian Influenza
Avian influenza (AI) remains a significant threat to poultry production. The event outlined key strategies to mitigate the risk:
- Disease Surveillance: Strengthening epidemiological monitoring to track AI strains and assess regional risks.
- Biosecurity Measures: Enhancing farm-level biosecurity through disinfection protocols, restricted farm access, and farmer training.
- Innovative Vaccination Strategies: Implementing hatchery-based vaccination programs like those in Senegal and adopting advanced approaches such as “DIVA” used in France.
- Policy & Collaboration: Encouraging dialogue between regulators and industry players to improve disease management frameworks and vaccine policies.
The event reinforced the need for proactive measures to safeguard Africa’s poultry industry, ensuring sustainable growth and food security across the continent.
