OUR FELLOWS
Matilda Ayim-Akonor is fighting livestock diseases that have caused the collapse of many large farms in Ghana and that threaten the extinction of the few that remain, particularly poultry operations. Ghana’s total poultry population is estimated to be more than 20 million, 80 percent of which are rural scavenging chickens. Of these, 80 percent are lost annually due to outbreaks of Newcastle disease and other causes.
While Ayim-Akonor is fascinated by animal virology, farmers are her real focus. “My goal is to help farmers increase their earnings and reduce unemployment, while rekindling interest in livestock and poultry production, particularly among the youth,” says Ayim-Akonor.
My goal is to help farmers increase their earnings and reduce unemployment, while rekindling interest in livestock and poultry production, particularly among the youth,” says Ayim-Akonor. “In my research, I use modern diagnostic methods, particularly the application of the polymerase chain reaction technique that allows veterinarians to promptly and accurately treat the disease before the farmer loses another animal.
Field of Research
Assessing the prevalence of emerging diseases, and diseases with high morbidity but low mortality, in livestock and poultry in rural Ghana.