Proceedings of the FAO Panel of Experts on Ecological and Technical Aspects of the Programme for the Control of African Animal Trypanosomiasis and Related Development
Animal Production and Health Paper. Rome, FAO. (In press)
Trypanosomiasis remains one of the major constraints to livestock production in the 36 African countries infested with its vector, the tsetse fly. Control operations so far have not been able to keep pace with the continuing need for more tsetse-free land.
The difficulty in convincing governments to allocate sufficient funds for control of this disease, which covers vast stretches of the continent, could be mitigated by an analysis of economic justifications. Without the security of funding, control programmes are necessarily restrained. The FAO Panel of Experts on Ecological and Technical Aspects of the Programme for the Control of African Animal Trypanosomiasis and Related Development met in Harare, Zimbabwe, in June 1991. It reviewed and evaluated the disease and tsetse control techniques, training, research and economic and environmental considerations.
Thirteen working papers are included in this publication, written by members of the Panel of Experts. They are published with a view to assisting other workers in this specialized field. The opinions expressed are those of the authors to whom any queries should be directed. Copies of this publication will be available from the Distribution and Sales Section, FAO, Viale delle Terme di Caracalla, 00100, Rome.
Trypanosomiasis control as an element of sustainable agricultural production
This work is published as the report of the Meeting of the Panel of Experts described in the previous section. It briefly sums up the technical, training, research and control aspects as well as the environmental and economic aspects of the disease.
Commission on African Animal Trypanosomiasis - Sixth Session
The terms of reference of this Commission, established at the 1979 FAO Conference, are to evaluate the progress of the Programme for the Control of African Animal Trypanosomiasis and Related Development and to advise on planning and implementation. For this purpose, the sixth session of this Commission met in Harare, Zimbabwe, in June 1991.
The report includes a review of recommendations, the programme analysis and the FAO field programme.
For copies of the above two publications, please contact Dr B. Hursey, Trypanosomiasis and Tsetse Control Group, Animal Production and Health Division, FAO, Viale delle Terme di Caracalla, 00100 Rome. Tel. 57975167, Fax 57973152.
Natural Veterinary Medicine-ectoparasites in the tropics
U. Matzigkeit. 1990. Weikersheim, Verlag Josef Margraf.
After a review of ectoparasites of veterinary importance, the author describes about 20 tropical plants from which pesticides and repellents are derived. The properties (repellent, insecticide, wound-healing) of these plants are described with suggestions for experimentation. For example, we learn that gummy fluid from the bark of the baobab can be used for wound treatment and that the oil obtained by pounding the decorticated seeds may be used as a parasiticide in various cutaneous afflictions, such as ringworm or scabies. The book details use of local resources, which are reasonably priced in comparison to synthetic pesticides.
The publisher's address is Verlag Josef Margraf, PO Box 105, D-6992 Weikersheim, Germany.
P.M.
Traditional veterinary medicine
Bangkok, FAO/APHCA Publications.
A new series of publications on traditional veterinary medicine in Asian countries has been issued by the FAO Regional Office for Asia and the Pacific in Bangkok, Thailand.
Some advantages in the use of traditional medicines in the treatment of livestock are that they can be prepared locally, are not expensive and have been practiced for generations as part of the culture of many countries. The use of such plants as the fern, Cyrtomium caryotideum Presl, as an anthelmintic and the root of Raphanus sativus L. for milk flow and as a cough remedy, or - to explain that perhaps long unanswered "curiosity" - the fruit of Aesculus undicus (horse chestnut) for treating horse colic, are some examples of the multitude of plants with medicinal properties.
With the introduction of antibiotics, the use of herbal medicines declined somewhat but a more recent revival of interest in these traditional practices has prompted the revision of some of the publications issued about a decade ago by the FAO Animal Production and Health Commission for Asia and the Pacific (APHCA).
It has been advocated that recognition and integration of traditional veterinary medicine into modern animal health systems should take place to help overcome difficulties in bringing prompt treatment to livestock in the developing countries.
Some of the countries covered- by these publications include Indonesia, Nepal and Sri Lanka. For copies of these books and for further information, please write to APHCA, FAO Regional Office for Asia and the
Pacific, Maliwan Mansion, Phra Alit Road, Bangkok 10200, Thailand.
B.T.B.
Manual técnico do maneio de pequenos ruminantes
D. McKinnon & F.P. Morgado. 1990. INDE,
Editora Escolar, R.P. Mozambique 0800/90 INLD.
Although sheep and goats are important components of the animal population in Mozambique, there is little knowledge of management and breeding of the Mozambican breeds. This manual, written in Portuguese, is intended to improve local breeds by following basic principles of management in nutrition, reproduction, animal health and disease control, and to describe the practical uses of products of animal origin.
Each chapter is accompanied by simple and practical drawings, with more than 200 illustrations representing sheep and goats at different ages, the main Mozambican breeds as well- as several types of local pasture and schemes for pasture rotation.
This simply written publication is a very practical tool and may be highly recommended for use by local smallholder breeders.
V.W.
