A national SMP roll-out workshop for Tanzania was held at Royal Village Hotel in Dodoma, Tanzania from 5th to 8th May 2015 to roll-out ready SMPs for FMD, PPR, RVF and brucellosis to veterinary stakeholders in the public and private sectors engaged in livestock and wildlife within Tanzania for purposes of creating awareness and initiating implementation. The workshop attracted 60 participants from Ministry of Livestock and Fisheries Development at the Headquarters, Zonal Veterinary Centres, Regions and Local Government Authorities, Tanzania Veterinary Laboratory Agency, Veterinary Council of Tanzania, Tanzania National Parks, Tanzania Meat Board, AU-IBAR and IGAD.
In his welcome remarks, Dr Joseph Masambu, on behalf of the Chief Executive Officer, Tanzania Veterinary Laboratory Agency (TVLA), welcomed participants and Dr Joseph Magona representing AU-IBAR and the SMPAH project. He stressed the importance of the laboratory as a tool for disease surveillance and disease control. He appreciated the key benefits accruing from the project such as capacity building in disease surveillance, epidemiological investigations and reporting, laboratory management, and development of SMPs for nine priority TADs. He highlighted the role of laboratories in disease surveillance and control and the role TVLA plays in the implementation of SMP-AH Project in Tanzania.
In his remarks, Dr Joseph Magona, on behalf of the Director, AU-IBAR, Prof. Ahmed Elsawalhy, thanked the Government of Tanzania in general and Ministry of Livestock and Fisheries Development for organizing the SMP roll-out workshop for Tanzania. He noted the huge livestock resource in countries in the Greater Horn of Africa, including Tanzania and the challenge of transboundary animal diseases (TADs) that continues to affect livestock production and trade in the region. He stressed that the SMP roll-out workshop was intended to disseminate ready SMPs, namely, FMD, PPR, RVF and brucellosis to all national stakeholders in order to initiate implementation at national level. He hoped that all livestock stakeholders in Tanzania would embrace the implementation of the SMPs during implementation of disease control programmes and regulation of trade in livestock and livestock products.
In his opening remarks, Dr Joram Mghwira, on the behalf of the Director of Veterinary Services for Tanzania, stressed the fact that the roll-out workshop was designed to create awareness among stakeholders about the SMPs before implementation.
Each participant received a copy of the SMPs for FMD, PPR, RVF and brucellosis and action plans for immediate implementation were developed.
The meeting recommended the following:
To AU-IBAR
- To consider supporting of the logistics for vaccination of priority TADs as well as vaccine procurement for cross-border areas under SMPAH project, given the incredible difficulties the Veterinary Services are experiencing in getting funds allocated for vaccine procurement
- To organize bilateral cross-border meeting between Tanzania and Kenya, and Tanzania and Uganda to facilitate development of bilateral agreements on export/import of livestock and livestock products across the border
To AU-IBAR and Department of Veterinary Services
- To consider lobbying for additional funding to support implementation of the SMPs especially after the end of the SMPAH project, given the late starting of the SMP roll-out for the nine TADs targeted
To Department of Veterinary Services
- To ensure that all vaccine stocks imported into Tanzania are certified by AU-PANVAC
- To consider formulating a legal framework to facilitate the implementation of the SMPs
- To consider facilitating the veterinarians at border livestock markets with vaccines and other inputs for on-spot disease control especially on trade animals to ease issuance of movement permits
- To continue conducting risk mapping in high potential areas that supply animals to strategic markets and apply appropriate disease control measures to facilitate smooth trade
- To conduct a study to assess the status of holding facilities to facilitate rehabilitation and operationalization of such facilities
- To conduct a study to determine why traders do not comply with export regulations
To DVS, TVLA, VCT, DPM and TMB
- To use registered feedlots and ranches as pre-quarantine facilities
To AU-IBAR, ICPALD, TMB, DPM and LGAs
- To establish and strengthen an umbrella livestock stakeholder association for Tanzania aligned to NEALCO to promote regional and export trade in livestock and livestock products
As a way forward, the meeting resolved to organize four activities as follows: a national SMP implementation planning workshop; four zonal SMP roll-out workshops in Arusha, Mwanza, Kagera and Southern Highlands; four zonal workshops for strengthening the community disease reporting system involving livestock owners, private veterinarians, field veterinary officers, district veterinary officers, heads of zonal veterinary centres and the Head of the Epidemiology Unit in Arusha, Mwanza, Kagera and Southern Highlands; and three mobilization workshops for stakeholders for implementation of disease control programmes in cross-border areas in Arusha, Mwanza and Mbeya.