By Philip Yatai
The Agriculture and Rural Development Secretariat of the Federal Capital Territory Administration (FCTA) has commenced an aggressive rabies vaccination, targeting 15,000 to 20,000 dogs and cats in the two-week exercise.
The Mandate Secretary , Mr Sulieman Ango, said while monitoring the exercise in Gwagwalada on Wednesday, that the move was to permanently halt the spread of rabies across the territory.
Ango added that the two-week campaign was designed to create a total protective barrier against the virus, following localized rabies cases reported strictly within the Gwagwalada and Kwali Area Councils.
He emphasised that physical oversight was vital to ensuring the accuracy and efficacy of the ongoing intervention.
He commended the secretariat’s veterinary team for their rapid containment efforts, noting that outside the initially reported cases in Gwagwalada and Kwali, no new rabies cases have been recorded anywhere else in the FCT.
He credited the swift approval and proactive backing of the FCT Minister, Mr Nyesom Wike, for enabling the secretariat to deploy immediate resources to the affected zones.
“Over 100 experienced veterinary officers have been mobilised across key field locations to execute the two-week operation.
“We have the firm conviction that by vaccinating 15,000 to 20,000 dogs and cats, we are going to stop the spread of the virus.
“From what we have recorded so far, two weeks is sufficient time for our team to cover this scope,” he said.
Addressing public anxiety over the outbreak, the mandate secretary urged residents across FCT communities to remain calm and cooperate fully with veterinary teams on the ground.
He maintained that the government’s swift response reflects a broader commitment to delivering tangible results for public health and safety.
“Everybody should remain calm; the government is there for them. With our minister at the helm of affairs, residents do not need to be scared of anything.
“The vaccination exercise will continue daily across designated centers in all six area councils over the next fortnight,” Ango said.
On his part, Dr Karnak Dandam, Director of Veterinary Services said that the ambitious, territory-wide free rabies vaccination campaign aimed at eradicating the deadly virus across all 62 wards of the FCT.
Dandam described rabies as a “100 per cent fatal disease” once clinical symptoms manifest in human victims, but stressed that it remains entirely preventable through animal immunisation.
“Rabies is a very deadly disease. Once a rabid dog bites a human being and the clinical signs set in, there is no survival, but it is 100 per cent preventable once the dogs are vaccinated.
“Even if a vaccinated dog bites you, you are safe from rabies,” he said.
The director said that prior to the central rollout, several communities had already taken proactive measures, disclosing that Kuje Area Council had initiated early local vaccination drives immediately following initial outbreak reports.
He also said that Bassa village also partnered with the secretariat, adding that veterinary officers were deployed to the village to administer locally secured vaccines.
Dandam expressed confidence that the current stock of vaccines would be sufficient to achieve the two-week target.
“Equipped with more than 12,000 vaccine doses, the veterinary teams are working continuously to vaccinate dogs and carts, including stray ones.
Some of the beneficiaries of the exercise in Gwagwalada commended the FCT for the swift response.
One of them, Mr Nathan Yusuf, a local dog owner, who brought his dogs for their first rabies shot, expressed satisfaction with the free exercise.
Similarly, Bashir Yusuf, a local hunter, who presented his three dogs for vaccination, commended the FCTA for providing timely veterinary care at no cost to the residents.
The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the FCTA had on July 15 confirmed eight rabies cases and two deaths in the territory and urged residents to vaccinate their dogs and cats to curb the virus’ spread.
The administration, thereafter, announced plans to begin a mass vaccination exercise in all villages and towns in the six area councils of the FCT. (NAN)
Edited by Sadiya Hamza