Luanda – Angola minister of Agriculture and Fisheries António Francisco de Assis Tuesday in Luanda denied reports on alleged fresh wave of deaths of cattle imported from Chad in 2020.
"I can't confirm it. This is not official information from the Ministry of Agriculture and Fisheries," said the minister to the press on reports circulated on social media.
In recent days, news outlets and some social media have reported an alleged wave of massive deaths this year of part of the 1,500 heads of cattle from Chad.
There are reports that the cattle population have contracted strange disease in the country of origin.
The official, who was speaking on the sidelines of the meeting of the Economic Commission of the Cabinet Council, chaired by the President João Lourenço, would not elaborate further detail on the state of the cattle, brought under a bilateral agreement.
Under the terms of the aforementioned agreement between Angola and Chad, in March of last year, the country began to receive the first 5,000 heads of cattle, of the 75,000 planned, as payment for a debt to Angola of USD100 million.
The animals are concentrated in Camabatela highlands , Ambaca municipality, in northern province of Cuanza Norte, as part of a repopulation project of animals in that locality and subsequent distribution throughout the country.
The head of the Provincial Department of the Institute of Veterinary Service told recently Angop that at least 105 of the 1,500 heads of cattle from Chad died in April (one month after arrival) in that municipality, as a result of a disease that was unknown until now.
João Alfredo said, at the time, that the affected animals are part of a batch of 1,500 cattle delivered to three local breeders.
According to the source, the death of cattle began shortly after arriving in that municipality, on April 19, after having been in quarantine in Quiminha, Luanda province, where they were subjected to laboratory tests to find out about their health condition.
The first three heads, he added, would have died during transport, and others on the placement farms, allegedly for not adapting to the climate and pasture.
