Deputy Minister of Agriculture and Environment Phùng Đức Tiến delivers a speech at the conference on Monday in Hà Nội.—VNS Photo Tố Như

HÀ NỘI — The pace of animal disease vaccination funded by the State budget continued to fall short of the targets set out in national plans in the first half of this year.

Vaccination coverage for African swine fever (ASF) among pigs reached just 1.1 per cent of the total herd, avian influenza coverage stood at 19.8 per cent and foot-and-mouth disease immunisations among cattle and buffalo reached 25.5 per cent.

Apart from avian influenza, most other diseases recorded vaccination rates below 10 per cent, highlighting limited vaccine coverage, especially in small-scale and scattered livestock operations.

Deputy Minister of Agriculture and Environment Phùng Đức Tiến raised these concerns at a national review conference on the implementation of control programmes for avian influenza, foot-and-mouth disease and ASF. The event was held on Monday in Hà Nội.

Tiến said the main obstacles include difficulties in livestock population assessment close to vaccination periods, limited funding, complex procurement procedures and low public awareness of the importance of immunisation.

In several localities, enforcement measures against non-compliance remain absent, posing challenges to achieving community-wide immunity.

He also highlighted several persistent issues, including a high prevalence of avian influenza viruses; the coexistence of small-scale and concentrated livestock farming, which complicates disease control; weak vaccination uptake in remote areas; substandard slaughtering and processing facilities not meeting export requirements; and underdeveloped infrastructure in livestock regions.

These challenges require incentive mechanisms, supportive policies, greater public awareness and stronger monitoring, Tiến said.

Phan Quang Minh, deputy director of the ministry’s Department of Livestock Production and Animal Health, said 10 outbreaks of foot-and-mouth disease were recorded nationwide, involving 235 animals infected and 34 culled. These figures mark a decrease of over 77 per cent in terms of outbreaks and over 83 per cent in cases.

Avian influenza occurred in six provinces with nine outbreaks, causing 21,337 infected birds and 25,318 birds to be destroyed. The number of provinces with outbreaks decreased, but the level of damage doubled.

A total of 251 ASF outbreaks were reported in 35 provinces, representing a 14.6 per cent drop in the number of affected localities, a 61.8 per cent decrease in outbreaks, and an 81.3 per cent reduction in losses compared to the same period in 2024.

Nationwide, 580 pig farms have been certified as disease-free for ASF, far exceeding the target of 80.

Speaking at the conference, a representative from the UN's Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) said that under the ongoing ASF project, with financial support from the Republic of Korea, they look forward to assessing the impact of ASF vaccination in Việt Nam, which can provide critical data and inform the national programme for ASF control from 2026-2030.

Experts are also working closely with the epidemiology division to develop guidelines for poultry and pigs.

Under regional projects awaiting the ministry's approval, FAO will contribute to developing animal health surveillance and laboratory capacities, organising Applied Veterinary Epidemiology Trainings and strengthening One Health collaboration in provinces along the borders to prevent the spread of disease.— VNS