Prevention-first approach earns top marks
Gyeonggi Province has been named the top-performing institution in the Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs' "2026 Local Government Livestock Disease Prevention Best Practices Special Evaluation."
The Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs has conducted annual assessments of local governments' livestock disease prevention performance since 2005, identifying and recognizing outstanding cases. This year's evaluation covered all 16 cities and provinces nationwide, assessing the effectiveness of each jurisdiction's disease prevention measures, creativity, efficiency, and collaboration between local and central government.
According to Gyeonggi Province on Monday, the province earned high marks for its prevention-centered approach. Measures included early shipment and breeding restrictions for ducks — a high-risk species for highly pathogenic avian influenza (AI) during winter — and operation of mobile guidance teams to block migratory birds from approaching farms. The province also strengthened foot-and-mouth disease vaccination management to maintain high immunity levels, ran a joint task force with the central government dedicated to preventing African swine fever (ASF) outbreaks, and established a Gyeonggi-specific mid- to long-term comprehensive livestock disease prevention plan. It also built a diagnostic system covering four major epidemic livestock diseases — highly pathogenic AI, ASF, foot-and-mouth disease and lumpy skin disease — the first such system established by a local government.
Gyeonggi Province went beyond reactive responses to outbreaks, strengthening preventive measures tailored to high-risk periods and regional characteristics. The province also analyzed the causes of outbreaks in affected areas to develop improvements to disease prevention facilities, and received recognition for linking field-level feedback to policy reforms at the central government level.
Lee Eun-gyeong, head of the Gyeonggi Province Animal Disease Prevention and Hygiene Division, said the top recognition "is the result of the combined efforts of the province, cities and counties, animal health laboratories, field disease prevention workers and livestock farmers." She added that the province would "take responsibility knowing that Gyeonggi's livestock disease prevention is national disease prevention, and continue to do our utmost to minimize the occurrence and damage of livestock infectious diseases through proactive prevention and swift response."
As the top-ranked institution, Gyeonggi Province is set to receive a commendation from the minister of agriculture, food and rural affairs on Aug. 27, and will present its best practices at a national foot-and-mouth disease and lumpy skin disease workshop for cities and provinces the following day.
pjh@heraldcorp.com
