ARUSHA, Tanzania, June 18 (Xinhua) -- Tanzania on Monday issued an alert following an outbreak of Rift Valley fever (RVF) in Kenya and Rwanda.
Mary Mashingo, Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of Livestock and Fisheries, said the government has instructed district, municipal and city councils to ensure that the public is well informed on the disease, which has killed six people in Kenya.
"We're fully aware of the outbreak of the disease and we've put in place all measures to ensure that our people are free from the disease," Mashingo told journalists in the country's capital, Dodoma.
There was so far no documented RVF case in the country, said Mashingo.
Mashingo directed the councils to ensure that all animals are sent in formal slaughtering areas where there are certified livestock specialists.
Rift Valley fever is a mosquito-borne viral disease that is endemic in parts of Africa. It affects both humans and livestock and spreads through infected blood, milk or the bite of infected mosquitoes.
