Disease

Anthrax outbreak: Burkina Faso

An anthrax outbreak was reported to the World Organisation for Animal Health (OIE) Wednesday by the Ministère des Ressources Animales et Halieutiques, Ouagadougou , Burkina Faso. The outbreak registered in Banakeledaga, Bama, Houet killed 70 cattle, registered in four (4) herds that belong to four (4) farmers: three (3) of them from the Fulani camp of Banankeledaga and one (1) from the village of Bama.

Middle East respiratory syndrome coronavirus (MERS-CoV) – Saudi Arabia and Qatar

Between 18 March and 20 April 2017 the national IHR Focal Point of Saudi Arabia reported 13 additional cases of Middle East Respiratory Syndrome (MERS) including two fatal cases.| On 18 April 2017 the national IHR Focal Point of Qatar reported one additional case of MERS.

Crop-eating armyworm marches on

The fall armyworm - which decimates fields as it marches ever forward - has spread to Angola as the caterpillar eats its way through southern Africa, a U.N. agency said.

With Angola the latest country affected, only Lesotho and island nations in the region have escaped the pest, which devours crops in its path, U.N. officials said. Its spread has undermined hopes for a better harvest this year, they added, with swathes of southern, eastern and western Africa infested.

Native to North and South America, the caterpillar was first detected in Western Africa in 2016 and has since spread across sub-Saharan Africa, ravaging maize and other cereal crops.