Ha Tinh speeds up disbursement to support livestock farmers affected by disease

It has been three years since Ha Tinh livestock farmers were in turmoil due to African swine fever and lumpy skin disease in buffaloes and cows. These two infectious diseases are particularly dangerous in large livestock herds as they spread rapidly, thereby causing great damage.

The old support policy has expired since September 2021, so livestock farmers who suffered losses due to the two epidemics during this period have not been able to receive any form of support. In consideration of the plea from livestock farmers and the proposals of the relevant authorities, the Central Government and Ha Tinh province decide to allocate more than VND 46.82 billion from the budget to districts, cities and towns. The aim is to support livestock farms suffering damage from lumpy skin disease in buffaloes and cows (culled from September 27, 2021) and African swine fever (culled from 2021 to present).

The total herd of livestock supported is 18,254. This includes 18,234 pigs in 13 districts, towns and cities plus 20 buffaloes and cows (equivalent to 2,794 kg of meat) in Ha Tinh city, Thach Ha, Loc Ha, and Vu Quang.

Cam Xuyen is the locality most severely affected by African swine fever, with more than 6,500 pigs forced to be destroyed. The total amount of support according to the norm is more than VND 18 billion. “Implementing the directives of the superiors, after the province allocated resources, Cam Xuyen quickly assigns leaders of communes and towns to review and publicly post the list of households with destroyed pigs that are entitled to the damage support policy so the people themselves can monitor the progress,” said Le Ngoc Ha, Vice Chairman of Cam Xuyen District People's Committee.

According to the plan, Cam Xuyen District People's Committee will start providing support packages to people in early December and strive to complete it before December 31, 2024. The issuance of this support policy has thus answered farmer’s needs for the past 2 - 3 years, promptly encouraging people to overcome the difficult period due to the impact of the epidemic.

Vice Chairman Le Ngoc Ha strongly believes that the support policy this time may open up additional investment resources and contribute to effective disease prevention. Livestock households can restore their herds in time to meet food demands before, during and after the Lunar New Year.

Regarding lumpy skin disease, the entire district has recorded 465 buffaloes and cows dead and destroyed. The problem is that some of the affected households are not eligible for support due to executing destruction of sick livestock before September 27, 2021, following the regulations in Document 3678/STC-NSHX dated August 21, 2024, of the Ha Tinh Department of Finance.

The procedures for allocating resources and publicly posting the list of households affected by the epidemic in communes and villages have also been implemented in Duc Tho district. The local authorities expect to complete the payment of more than VND 4.6 billion for nearly 2,000 pigs affected by African swine fever before the end of this year.

“We are asking for more drastic action to speed up the progress in communes with large funds such as Lam Trung Thuy, Tan Dan, An Dung, and Thanh Binh Thinh. We will also have to closely monitor the payments to ensure they reach the right recipients at the right support and funding levels,” said the leader of Duc Tho district.

The People's Committee of Ha Tinh province requests the People's Committees of districts, cities and towns to be responsible for the accuracy of the support subjects, records, volume and funding needs for approving support proposals. The relevant units will then decide on the allocation of funding for the People's Committees at the commune level to distribute support funds in a prompt manner.

The provincial Department of Finance, Department of Agriculture and Rural Development, State Treasury, and People's Committees of districts, cities and towns, according to their functions and duties, must take full responsibility before the law, the provincial People's Committee, the Chairman of the provincial People's Committee, and inspection and examination agencies for the accuracy and compliance with legal regulations of information, data and implementation costs.