FAO Animal Health Manual	No. 11
	MANUAL ON THE PREPARATION OF AFRICAN SWINE FEVER CONTINGENCY PLANS Contents

Text prepared by

William A. Geering
Consultant, EMPRES/Infectious Diseases Group, FAO, Rome
Former Director, Animal and Plant Health,
Bureau of Resource Sciences and Deputy Chief Veterinary Officer,
Australia

Mary-Louise Penrith
Assistant Director, ARC-Onderstepoort Veterinary Institute, South Africa
and Consultant, African swine fever epidemiology
and control, FAO, Rome

David Nyakahuma
Associate Professional Officer (Early Warning),
EMPRES/Infectious Diseases Group, FAO, Rome

The designations employed and the presentation of material in this information product do not imply the expression of any opinion whatsoever on the part of the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations concerning the legal status of any country, territory, city or area or of its authorities, or concerning the delimitation of its frontiers or boundaries.

ISBN 92-5-104581-X

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Foreword

African swine fever (ASF) is one of the most serious transboundary animal diseases because of its high lethality for pigs, its crippling socio-economic consequences and its propensity for rapid and unanticipated international spread.

Transboundary animal diseases (TADs) are defined for EMPRES (Emergency Prevention System for Transboundary Animal and Plant Pests and Disease) as those diseases that are of significant economic, trade and food security importance for a considerable number of countries, that can easily spread from one country to another and reach epidemic proportions and that require international cooperation for control and management, including exclusion. The International Office of Epizootics (OIE) International animal health code includes ASF among List A diseases, which are defined as “communicable diseases which have the potential for serious and rapid spread, irrespective of national borders, which are of serious socio-economic or public health importance and which are of major importance in the international trade of animals and animals products”.

This manual provides information on the nature of ASF and the principles and strategic options regarding prevention, control and elimination of the disease. It provides guidelines for individual countries threatened by ASF for formulation of overall national policy on control and eradication of a possible incursion of the disease. The manual identifies the personnel, equipment and facilities needed in a national ASF contingency plan. A suggested outline of the format and contents of a national ASF contingency plan is provided; it should be modified to suit the needs and circumstances of individual countries. Consideration was given to the provisions in the OIE International animal health code in the preparation of the manual. It is suggested that this manual should be used together with the FAO Manual on the preparation of national animal disease emergency preparedness plans, published in 1999.

Sources of information recommended for use in conjunction with this manual include:

• Australian veterinary plan (AUSVETPLAN) disease strategy: African swine fever, 2nd ed. 1996. Agriculture and Resource Management Council of Australia and New Zealand.

• International animal health code: mammals, birds and bees. 1999. Paris, OIE.

• Manual on the preparation of national animal disease emergency preparedness plans. 1999. Animal health manual No. 6. Rome, FAO.

• Manual on livestock disease surveillance and information systems. 1999. Animal health manual No. 8. Rome, FAO.

• Manual on procedures for disease eradication by stamping out. To be published. Rome, FAO.

• Plowright, W., Thomson, G. R. & Neser, J. A. 1994. African swine fever. In J. Coetzer, G. Thomson & R. Tustin, eds. Infectious diseases of livestock, with special reference to South Africa, Vol. 1, p. 568–599. Oxford, Oxford University Press.

• Recognizing African swine fever - a field manual. To be published. Rome, FAO.

This manual will be reviewed regularly and revised in the light of experience. Suggestions and recommendations for amendment should be forwarded to:

EMPRES (Livestock)
FAO Animal Health Service
Animal Production and Health Division
Viale delle Terme di Caracalla
00100 Rome, Italy
Tel: 39 06 5705 4798/6772
Fax: 39 06 5705 3023
E-mail: [email protected]
www.fao.org/empres

FOOD AND AGRICULTURE ORGANIZATION OF THE UNITED NATIONS
Rome, © FAO 2001

Hyperlinks to non-FAO Internet sites do not imply any official endorsement of or responsibility for the opinions, ideas, data or products presented at these locations, or guarantee the validity of the information provided. The sole purpose of links to non-FAO sites is to indicate further information available on related topics.

Contents

Preface
Acknowledgements
Acronyms and abbreviations

Chapter 1
SUGGESTED FORMAT AND CONTENTS OF A NATIONAL ASF CONTINGENCY PLAN
Nature of the disease
Risk analysis for ASF
Prevention strategies
Early warning contingency plan
Strategies for control and eradication of ASF
Support plans
Action plans
Appendixes

Chapter 2
NATURE OF THE DISEASE
Definition
World distribution
Aetiology
Epidemiological features
Clinical signs
Pathology
Immunity
Diagnosis

Chapter 3
RISK ANALYSIS FOR ASF
Introduction
Principles of risk analysis
Who should carry out the risk analyses?
Risk assessment for ASF
The value of risk assessments for ASF

Chapter 4
PREVENTION STRATEGIES FOR ASF
Introduction
Import quarantine policy
Barrier and border quarantine policy
Swill feeding controls
Containment of pigs

Chapter 5
EARLY WARNING CONTINGENCY PLANNING FOR ASF
Introduction
Training of veterinarians and other animal health staff in early recognition of ASF and collection and dispatch of diagnostic specimens
Farmer awareness/education programmes
Specialist diagnostic team
Laboratory diagnostic capabilities
International reference laboratories and collaborating centres

Chapter 6
EARLY REACTION CONTINGENCY PLANNING FOR AN ASF EMERGENCY
Introduction
Epidemiological features influencing ASF eradication strategies
Strategies for ASF eradication
Zoning
Actions to be taken in infected zones
Actions to be taken in surveillance zones
Actions to be taken in disease-free zones
Repopulation
Some factors crucial to the success of an ASF eradication campaign
Verification of ASF eradication and national or zonal freedom from the disease

Chapter 7
ORGANIZATIONAL ARRANGEMENTS DURING AN ASF EMERGENCY CAMPAIGN
Responsibilities and command structures
Consultative committee on emergency animal diseases (CCEAD)
National animal disease control centre
Local animal disease control centres

Chapter 8
SUPPORT PLANS
Financial plan
Resource plans
Legislation

Chapter 9
ACTION PLAN
Investigation phase
Alert phase
Operational phase
International reporting
Obtaining political support
Public-awareness campaign
Slaughter, destruction and decontamination
Prevention of movement
Surveillance for ASF
Stand-down phase

Chapter 10
TRAINING, TESTING AND REVISION OF CONTINGENCY PLANS
Simulation exercises
Training
The need for regular updating of ASF contingency plans

Annex 1
OIE EXPERTS AND REFERENCE LABORATORIES FOR ASF

Acknowledgements

This manual is based on the format of the Australian Veterinary Emergency Plan (AUSVETPLAN) with some modifications.

The authors wish to thank Drs Preben Boysen, David Nyakahuma, Roger Paskin, Peter Roeder and Mark Rweyemamu of the EMPRES Livestock Unit, Infectious Diseases Group, Animal Health Service, FAO for providing useful suggestions and comments on various drafts of this manual. In particular, the meticulous way in which Dr. Roeder reviewed the drafts is hereby acknowledged.

Acronyms and abbreviations