The mid-term performance and budget execution report of the Livestock Development Fund for the North (CDEN), has been adopted.

The report was presented and adopted at the 55th ordinary session of the CDEN board meeting by members. The meeting, that took place in Yaounde on July 18, was presided at by the Board Chair and Minister of Livestock, Fisheries and Animal Industries, MINEPIA, Dr. Taïga.

Welcoming the board members, among who were the Governors of the Adamawa, North and Far North Regions, Dr. Taïga said the meeting was postponed twice, due to the outbreak of the bird flu in some parts of the country. He said the issue of avian flu is now under control and activities of the sector in the affected areas will fully resume soon.

Items on the agenda included the reframing of the 2016 budget, examination and adoption of the 2015 administrative and management accounts, presentation of the store management account and financial report, the signing of the concordance certificate between the administrative accounts of the Administrative Director and the management account of the Stores Accountant.

The presentation of the 2016 mid-term performance and budget execution report was also high on the agenda.

According to the synopsis of the report, the performance project of CDEN was pegged on three of the four programmes of MINEPIA, notably: the development of productions and animal industries, improving the health coverage of livestock and the fight against zoonosis, and governance and institutional support in the livestock, fisheries and animal industries sub-sector.

It notes that the budget of the fund adopted during the 54th session in income and expenditure stood at FCFA 756 million and it was approved by the Minister of Finance following correspondence No 00001164/L/MINFI/SG/DGB/DPC/B8 of 17 February 2016 and trimmed to FCFA 506 million.

Within the framework of the development of production and animal industries sub-programme, CDEN for the first five months, was able to put in place improved grass farms at Bocklé, Wakwa, Fory and Dogba, as well as an animal feed production unit in Maroua.

In the light of promoting large-scale animal rearing, a capacity building workshop for breeders on the production of improved grass was organised in Garoua.

Regarding health coverage of livestock and the fight against zoonosis, CDEN worked on improving the sanitary security around livestock stations as well as placing a request for the acquisition of materials for traceability and identification of animals.

For the governance and institutional support to the livestock, fisheries and animal industries sub-sector, the actions of CDEN were directed towards the coordination and follow-up of activities, improving of financial and budgetary management, improving the working environment at CDEN as well as the development of human resources.

The regular payments of telephone, water, electricity, internet connection bills, monthly salaries, CNPS contributions, among others, were also highlighted under this sub-programme.

It was disclosed that in terms of human resources, MINEPIA provided an animal industry engineer, three tractor drivers and a security guard at the service of CDEN.