Yogyakarta (ANTARA) - The Agriculture and Food Security Service (DPKP) of Yogyakarta Province (DIY) has said it will receive more than 10 thousand anthrax vaccine doses from the Ministry of Agriculture.

"The assistance will reach more than 10 thousand, but we do not know the exact number yet," the head of DPKP, Sugeng Purwanto, informed on Wednesday.

According to him, Agriculture Minister Syahrul Yasin Limpo will hand over the vaccines to Gunungkidul district on Thursday.

"If all goes according to plan, Minister Limpo will hand over the vaccine assistance directly to Gunungkidul," he said.

Meanwhile, the DPKP's veterinary medicine associate for animal husbandry and animal health, Agung Ludiro, said that earlier, the province had requested an additional 10,200 doses of the anthrax vaccine from the Agriculture Ministry.

The request was based on the total vaccine needs mapped out for each district in Yogyakarta, minus the stock of anthrax vaccine, which is currently pegged at 2,600 doses, Ludiro informed.

"The ministry informed that they could prepare the number we requested, but there was a possibility for them to provide more," he said.

All vaccine doses received from the ministry will need to be used within six months, before the next batch of vaccines arrives, he added.

He said the provision has been applied considering the previously confirmed cases of anthrax in Yogyakarta Province, namely in Jati Village, Semanu Sub-district, Gunungkidul District.

"Because anthrax cases have been discovered, vaccinations must be carried out every six months or twice a year," he explained.

To prevent anthrax cases from spreading, the vaccine doses received from the Ministry of Agriculture will be distributed to all districts in Yogyakarta province, Ludiro informed.

"For Yogyakarta city, we are still discussing the number because the livestock in that area is not a lot," he said.

According to him, especially in Gunungkidul, the administration of the vaccine will be divided into three zones, namely, the red zone in Semanu sub-district, the yellow zone comprising sub-districts that are directly adjacent to the red zone, and the green zone comprising sub-districts that are not directly adjacent.

"In the red zone, 100 percent of all livestock will be vaccinated, then in the second and third zones, at least 80 percent of livestock," Ludiro said.

Earlier, three persons with positive anthrax status died while 87 suspected cases were detected in Jati village, Gunungkidul district.

Based on data from DPKP, a total of 12 livestock have died from anthrax in Jati Village, consisting of six cows and six goats since April 2023.

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Translator: Luqman Hakim, Resinta S
Editor: Rahmad Nasution
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