THE Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) yesterday said it has distributed more than P9.25 million worth of assistance to families affected by the African swine fever (ASF) in Aklan and Antique.
The DSWD-Disaster Response Operations Monitoring and Information Center (DROMIC) said that as of July 15, some P531,000 worth of assistance has been distributed to families living in Tangalan, Aklan, while P8.75 million worth of emergency cash transfer (ECT) has been provided to families in Hamtic in Antique.
The province of Aklan has been under a state of calamity due to ASF since May this year, while Hamtic and the province of Capiz were placed under a state of calamity in June.
DSWD said 15,442 families or 74,413 persons are affected by the ASF in 299 barangays in Western Visayas.
The department said that while ASF does not pose a danger to human health, it has devastating effects on pig populations and the farming economy.
DSWD Region VI, quoting a report of the World Organization for Animal Health (WOAH), described ASF as a highly contagious viral disease of domestic and wild pigs that “can survive on clothes, boots, wheels, and other materials. It can also survive in various pork products, such as ham, sausages, or bacon.”
Earlier this month, President Marcos Jr. said the second phase for the trial of ASF vaccines is already underway, noting that the first phase of the trials on safety and efficacy of the vaccines has yielded positive results.
The President said the vaccine is 80 percent effective, a factor which he said could fast track the issuance of a certificate of product registration (CPR) for the ASF vaccines by the Philippine Food and Drug Administration (FDA).
