Goat Plague
Between the early 1960s and then into the 21st century a program was undertaken to rid the world of a cattle plague disease. The rinderpest eradication campaign was costly but largely successful. In the African country Chad for example, it is estimated that every dollar spent actually returned sixteen dollars or more. Now a less economically appealing but equally dangerous plague is threatening smaller animals like goats and sheep.
The new disease is known officially by the French name “peste de petits ruminants†(PPR) but it is also known as Goat Plague. It spreads extremely quickly in goat herds and sheep flocks killing many of the animals infected and ruining the farmers and their families.
At the moment PPR is endemic in large parts of sub-Saharan Africa. The virus is also causing problems in parts of Turkey, South Asia, and the Middle East. Reports are also indicating that it may be infecting animals in China, central Asia, and North Africa.
While it is a massive problem that is looming, action is a touch lacking. The authors of a new report on the subject have said that what is not generally appreciated is that the eradication of rinderpest has yielded benefits that surpass virtually every other development programme in agriculture, and will continue to do so in future.
Sheep and goats however, are seen as having a lower economic value than cattle. It is generally poorer people in developing nations who keep the smaller animals like goats and sheep. While the return on dollars spent may not be as dramatic for these animals as for cattle, if herds and flocks are wiped out across nations then food supplies will be seriously threatened.
The authors of the new report call on quick and concerted action over the next decade by organisations like the UN Food and Agriculture Organisation and the World Organisation for Animal Health. It would seem they are right to do so.
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