The Iloilo Provincial Government, through the Provincial Veterinarian's Office-Iloilo, has distributed P3.98 million in financial assistance to the first batch of local government units (LGUs) under its African Swine Fever Recovery program.
The initial recipients include the towns of Barotac Viejo, New Lucena, Sta. Barbara, Dingle, and Banate have been upgraded from Red to Pink Zone by the Bureau of Animal Industry.
The Pink Zone, or buffer zone, refers to areas where African Swine Fever (ASF) has not been detected but is adjacent to confirmed infected areas or the Red Zone.
Under the program, each qualified farmer will receive two piglets purchased by their local government units using the funds provided by the province.
Provincial Veterinarian Dr. Darel Tabuada said the program prioritizes purchasing from local sources, leveraging their immunity from previous ASF exposure.
“We have criteria, and the identified farmers underwent validation conducted by the PVO staff. Qualified farms should comply with Biosecurity level 1 requirements,” added Dr. Tabuada.
According to Provincial Administrator Dr. Raul Banias, the program is an effort to help our province recover from ASF.
“We hope to recover from this since we were net exporters (of swine) before but now we become importers,” said Banias.
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