UNMISS vets save cows and livelihoods, at upgraded veterinary clinic in Bor

unmiss south sudan bor india contingent peacekeepers veterinary clinic

A thoroughly renovated veterinary clinic in Bor is expected to keep more livestock healthy. They weren't welcome to the inauguration ceremony, though.

4 Mar 2019

UNMISS vets save cows and livelihoods, at upgraded veterinary clinic in Bor

Gideon Sackitey

“The UN Indian veterinary team works with us six days a week throughout the year. Last year they treated more than 22,000 animals.”

Daniel Deng, an animal health officer in Bor town in South Sudan’s Jonglei region, is excited. One would have guessed that his smile tied his ears together because of the inauguration of a thoroughly renovated and significantly upgraded veterinary clinic, but no, that is not why.

While he does appreciate the new and improved facilities, handed over by the United Nations Mission in South Sudan, it is the veterinary know-how of the Indian peacekeepers, and the benefits brought to the local community, that make Daniel Deng a human bundle of unbridled joy.

“The biggest help they give us is the training of animal health workers, who learn how to identify and treat diseases,” Deng says. “Last year they did a lot of tick control and treatment which helped control east coast fever, which normally kills a lot of livestock every year. This time, the veterinary team saved most of our dear animals.”

Colonel SE Thomas from the Indian peacekeeping contingent provides astonishingly low east coast fever mortality rates as a result of its veterinary health care interventions.

“Preventive measures and timely treatment have reduced deaths to just a handful,” he says, expressing hope and belief that their work can keep previously mass-killing diseases at bay.

Mr. Deng describes the vet clinic as “a stepping stone towards self-reliance” when it comes to managing livestock animals.

“Currently we have three students, including a woman studying veterinary sciences, doing internships here, and soon our own trainees will also know how to attend to the cattle.”

James Atong, a resident of Bor, used to have over a hundred cows and goats before the war, but with the disruptions caused by the conflict he couldn’t keep his animals healthy.

“Over the last two plus years, I have had to watch my cows die from diseases. There was nothing I could do to stop it, since there was nowhere I could take them for medical attention,” he laments. “Today, because of this clinic, several cattle camps in Jonglei will be happy and won’t lose their animals. “

Statistics from the clinic indicate that during the dry season almost 60 animals receive treatment every day. During the rainy season, that number triples.