2 weeks Ago
Dr Rundi (third left) presents an excellent service award to DVSS research officer Matthew Jenang as (from right) Dominic, Martin, Dr Adrian and Sirai look on. KUCHING (Nov 24): Sarawak is now ‘more or less’ clear of African Swine Fever (ASF), allowing the pig farming industry to flourish again, said Dato Sri Dr Stephen Rundi Utom. The Food Industry, Commodity and Regional Development Minister commended the efforts made by Department of Veterinary Services Sarawak (DVSS) to control the disease outbreak and maintain Sarawak’s foot and mouth disease (FMD)-free status.
“I received some feedback from our staff about being overworked, working on weekends and so on. But in the end, the result has made us proud that we are able to come back, especially the pig farming industry. So, now we are already more or less clear.
“And we’ve maintained our FMD-free (status). Because of that, our products are very marketable in Singapore and the rest (of the world),” he said at the DVSS Gala Night yesterday. Regarding rabies, he said more engagement and awareness programmes need to be held to stop its spread to humans and prevent more fatalities.
Since the rabies outbreak was declared in 2017, there have been 75 human deaths reported among 82 rabies cases, including seven fatalities this year “Rabies is preventable. Death because of rabies is preventable. But we have to explain to the public, because no matter how many dog bites (occur), death (cases) are being controlled and so on.
“For example, in Serian, where there is the highest rate of dog bites, they don’t have any deaths (from rabies anymore). So what we can do is to explain in terms of the medical part of it. “Once you are bitten, you have to do the procedures as you have all know, go to the hospital and so on.
The latest one (case) in Belaga, I think, is all because of ignorance,” he said. On another matter, Dr Rundi said the proposed Sarawak’s School of Veterinary Medicine will be sited at the Sarawak Agrotechnology Park (Sartech) Complex to be built in Semenggok near here. He said his ministry is collaborating with Universiti Putra Malaysia (UPM) to set up this school to overcome shortage of veterinarians in Sarawak.
“The Sartech Complex or Wisma Sartech, will house state-of-the-art technology, R&D, and so on. That will be the game-changer for our livestock in terms of our endeavour to improve not only SSL (self-sufficiency level), but also food security and food safety. So that we’ll be able to make sure that our people in Sarawak are protected from all the diseases,” he added.
Regarding Sarawak’s Post Covid-19 Development Strategy (PCDS) 2030, he said all agencies under his ministry need to step up efforts to meet the high key performance indicators (KPIs). “Agriculture can transform those farming communities that are still within the bracket of B40. So if we can develop and transform through our farming policies and so on, we will be able to transform the whole state of Sarawak to reach high income.
It’s useless if we say that Sarawak is rich, but the farmers are still poor,” he added. Meanwhile, DVSS director Datu Dr Adrian Susin Ambud said disease outbreaks continue to pose challenges to DVSS, especially with its limited manpower. “In particular, the outbreak of ASF in Sarawak a few years back.
I have seen how stressful it was, and enforcement officers of DVSS working together to strengthen the regulatory controls and implement strict biosecurity to control this disease from re-emerging in Sarawak,” he said. The DVSS Gala Night saw 21 staff being presented with excellent service awards and six retirees receiving appreciation awards. Also present at the cowboy-themed event were Food Industry, Commodity and Regional Development Deputy Minister Datuk Martin Ben, permanent secretary Datu Sirai Daha and Agriculture Department Sarawak director Dominic Chunggat.
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