Adoption of Bio-security Measures against Avian-Influenza Outbreaks among Poultry Farmers in Jigawa State, Nigeria

Abstract The study examined the adoption of selected bio-security measures against avian-influenza (HPAI-A/H5N1) outbreaks among poultry farmers in Jigawa State, Nigeria. A total of 120 respondents selected through a multistage sampling procedure were used for the study. The study revealed that the majority (92.5%) of the respondents were males, with a mean age of 24 years and an average household size of 5 persons. More than half (58.3%) of the poultry farmers have been exposed to one form of formal education or the other, had average farming experience of 13 years while their mean monthly income was N26, 075.00. Also, the majority (91.7%) of the respondents had an average flock size of about 411 birds, were members of a social group (84.2%) and had no extension contact (84.2%). The most prominent sources of awareness on Avian Influenza were; Co-farmers/farmers group (=3.711), followed by Radio programme and marketers of poultry products (M=3.523). Furthermore, the study revealed that there was high level of adoption on biosecurity measures of segregation and traffic control (M=2.820), medium level of adoption for cleaning (M=2.440) and low level of adoption for disinfection of the standard bio-security components (M=1.290). There was a significant relationship between some socio-economic characteristics (age, average monthly income, farming experience and membership of social group) and adoption of bio-security measures of poultry farmers. The highly severe constraints of the poultry farmers were poor extension/veterinary contact, lack of Buffer Areas around the farm site and inadequate access to fund. Provision of accessible credit facilities, pro-active extension services with continuous training and constant veterinary services for poultry farmers in the study area towards increased capability to prevent and eradicate the negative effect of this acute and highly contagious viral disease on their means of livelihood thus ensuring an improved and sustainable poultry production. Keywords: Adoption of bio-security, avian-influenza, outbreak, poultry farmers