Posted: Tuesday, October 22, 2024. 9:52 pm CST.
Minister of Agriculture Jose Abelardo Mai meets with Honduran Minister of Agriculture Laura Suazo in efforts to prevent New World Screwworm’s entry into Belize – Photo Credit: MAFSE
By Rubén Morales Iglesias: As part of measures to prevent the incursion of the New World Screwworm into Belize, Minister of Agriculture, Food Security, and Enterprise, Jose Abelardo Mai, is visiting Honduras and Panama. These countries are already affected by the pest, which could be devastating to Belize’s livestock population.
Minister Mai, accompanied by Ministry of Agriculture, Food Security, and Enterprise (MAFSE) Chief Executive Officer Servulo Baeza, Adviser Hugh O’Brien, and OIRSA Country Representative Fermin Blanco, met on Tuesday with Honduras’ Minister of Agriculture Laura Suazo and representatives of the National Service of Agricultural Health and Food Safety (Senasa). Senasa is leading the operations to eradicate the screwworm in Honduras.
“Today, we met with Minister Suazo and Senasa, which is equivalent to BAHA in Belize. They are leading the operations to eradicate screwworms in Honduras, where there have been 20 cases so far. They gave us a presentation on their efforts to control the spread of the pest,” Mai told Breaking Belize News.
“We are traveling to the Choluteca border with Nicaragua, where cases were found and where Senasa has installed treatment centers for animals in movement,” Mai added.
Mai and his team will be visiting these treatment centers on Wednesday.
Honduras’ Ministry of Agriculture first detected the presence of the New World Screwworm in September. Since then, the number of cases has grown to 20, despite the government’s immediate implementation of preventive and elimination measures and intensified surveillance, particularly in the affected areas in the departments of Choluteca and Olancho.
From Honduras, the MAFSE delegation will travel to Panama, which was the first Central American country affected by the deadly disease.
(R-L) OIRSA Country Representative Fermin Blanco, (MAFSE) Chief Executive Officer Servulo Baeza, Honduras’ Minister of Agriculture Laura Suazo, Belize Minister of Agriculture, and Adviser Hugh O’Brien in Honduras – Photo Credit: MAFSE.
The visit, organized by the Inter-American Institute for Cooperation on Agriculture (IICA) and the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA), in collaboration with the Ministry of Agriculture, Food Security, and Enterprise (MAFSE) and the Belize Agricultural Health Authority (BAHA), aims to enhance sensitization, information dissemination, and campaign strategies to prevent the screwworm from entering Belize.
“His visit to Honduras continues today as the top level MAFSE team studies the efforts of our Central American colleagues in identification, prevention, eradication and educational efforts to contain this pest that poses a threat to our livestock industry,” the Ministry of Agriculture, Food Security, and Enterprise (MAFSE) said in a statement posted on social media on Tuesday.
These efforts are crucial in maintaining Belize’s screwworm-free status, which has been achieved through vigilant monitoring and proactive measures.
The collaboration between IICA, USDA, MAFSE, and BAHA underscores the importance of regional cooperation in addressing agricultural threats and ensuring food security. Belize remains screwworm-free, and with continued vigilance and coordinated efforts, the country aims to maintain this status for as long as possible.
The New World Screwworm is a disease caused by the larvae of the fly Cochliomyia hominivorax, which lays its eggs in any open wound of a warm-blooded animal, including humans.
MAFSE has intensified its prevention campaign since the disease first appeared in the region. The Ministry advises Belizeans, particularly farmers, that if they see wounds with worms, they should call a veterinarian and report it to BAHA at 824-4872 or text 670-7003.
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The post Belize and Honduras collaborate to combat New World Screwworm appeared first on Belize News and Opinion on www.breakingbelizenews.com.
Posted: Tuesday, October 22, 2024. 9:52 pm CST. Minister of Agriculture Jose Abelardo Mai meets with Honduran Minister of Agriculture Laura Suazo in efforts to prevent
The post Belize and Honduras collaborate to combat New World Screwworm appeared first on Belize News and Opinion on www.breakingbelizenews.com.
