FG Urges Abia to Set Up Veterinary Clinic at Lokpanta Market

The Federal Ministry of Livestock Development has called on the Abia State Government to establish a veterinary clinic at the Lokpanta Cattle Market. The ministry warned that the absence of veterinary services and regulatory officers at livestock markets and abattoirs could allow diseased meat to reach consumers.

The advice was given by the Team Lead of the Federal Ministry's Tsetse Fly Surveillance and Control Project, Gilbert Okoro, after a verification exercise on tsetse fly infestation in the state. He also urged the state to increase the number of veterinary clinics to support existing facilities.

Okoro said the recommendation followed findings from the ministry's assessment of activities at the Lokpanta Cattle Market, the largest livestock trading hub in southern Nigeria. He noted that livestock from the market are distributed across the South-East and South-South regions.

He said the ministry recorded a high presence of tsetse flies around the market and called for continuous control measures. Okoro added that establishing more veterinary clinics would strengthen meat inspection, improve public health, and help prevent the sale of unhealthy livestock products.