Status of porcine cysticercosis in the Smallholder
Pig Production systems in Uganda
Joseph Kungu and Michel Dione
GALVmed Porcine Cysticercosis Meeting, Kampala, Uganda, 26-27
January 2015

Importance of Pig Production in Uganda
Pig production- a dynamic and rapidly growing sector in Uganda. In the
past three decades increased from 0.19 to 3.2 million pigs (UBOS, 2009;
FAO, 2011).
Uganda has the highest per capita consumption (3.4 kg/person/year) in
the region -10 times increase in the last 30 years, whereas beef is
declining (FAO, 2011)

Structure of the Pig Sector in Uganda
A large informal subsector
• More than1.1 million households.
• Backyard pig production, mainly managed by
women and children, as means to diversify risk
and increase livelihood security.
• Tethering & scavenging are common.
• In few districts, peri-urban small-scale semi-
intensive systems
• Uncoordinated trade & transport
• Mostly unsupervised slaughter, no meat
inspection in local markets, road-side butchers
• Pork joints

Pig production types
• Piglet producers - farmers who focus
on piglet production and sell weaners.
• Farmers start weaning piglets at 2-3
months of age.
• Growers - Farmers who buy or rear
piglets, fatten and sell grown pigs
for slaughter.

Pig feeding systems
• Feeding 60-75% of total variable costs
• Crop residues, forages and kitchen leftovers represent 70-
75% of the diet. Crop residues replaced by grasses and
weeds during crop growing seasons.
• Sweet potato vines the most preferred fodder for pigs,
regardless of VC domain; the 2nd most preferred cassava
leaves in rural, while yam leaves in peri-urban VCs.
• Feed collection and feeding mainly done by women and
children, however men and hired labor participate more in
peri-urban farms.
• Main constraints as identified by farmers: fodder shortages
in the dry season, high cost of commercial feeds, price
fluctuations of feed ingredients and poor quality of
purchased feeds.

Changes in the use of different breed-types in
Masaka, during the last 10 years

Pig keeping systems (n=1165)
House not raised floor Tethered pig Scavenging pig
House with raised floor
Confinement type
value chain domain
TotalRR RU UU
Backyard confinement 43 (6.08) 11 (5.07) 27 (11.2) 81 (6.95)
IMO 0 (0) 0 (0) 1 (0.41) 1 (0.09)
Housed-raised floor 38 (5.37) 33 (15.21) 69 (28.63) 140 (12.02)
Housed cemented floor 51 (7.21) 47 (21.66) 98 (40.66) 196 (16.82)
Housed-non-cemented floor 48 (6.79) 14 (6.45) 8 (3.32) 70 (6.01)
Free-range 43 (6.08) 16 (7.37) 9 (3.73) 68 (5.84)
Tethering on pastures 19 (2.69) 6 (2.76) 2 (0.83) 27 (2.32)
Tethering under a tree shade 465 (65.77) 90 (41.47) 27 (11.2) 582 (49.96)
Total 707 (100) 217 (100) 241 (100) 1165 (100)

Disease
Rural-Rural (n=170) Rural-Urban (n=90) Urban-Urban (n=80)
Morbidity
(%)
Mortality
(%)
Case fatality
(%)
Morbidity
(%)
Mortality
(%)
Case fatality
(%)
Morbidit
y (%)
Mortality
(%)
Case Fatality
(%)
ASF 29.8 23.1 77.5 43.1 31.8 73.6 15.8 7.5 47.5
worms 55.1 12.0 21.9 35.0 5.0 14.4 22.3 1.8 8.3
mange 16.1 1.9 11.5 14.8 1.1 7.5 14.0 0.4 2.8
lice 9.8 0.3 3.6 7.5 0.0 0.6 1.1 0.0 0.3
midge 1.3 0.0 0.0 0.1 0.0 0.0 1.1 0.0 0.3
diarrhea 5.8 1.3 4.7 4.6 0.7 5.4 5.6 0.5 4.2
malnutrition 2.4 0.1 2.6 3.6 0.0 0.9 4.3 0.1 3.2
FMD 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 1.5 0.0 0.1
Others* 0.0 0.0 0.0 3.8 0.2 4.9 0.3 0.0 0.8
Pig diseases prioritized by farmers
*Swine erysipelas, anemia, ticks, jiggers, heat stress, fever, undiagnosed diseases usually related to sudden death

Pig movement control and animal welfare
• Lack of pig movement control
• Poor transportation means
Pig being transported from Masaka to Kampala
Pig being transported from a rural village
to the town in Lira district
Pig being transported from a rural village
(Tenjeru) to the town in Mukono district

Slaughtering and handling practices
Backyard slaughter Use of banana leaves as underway
No proper disposable of offal's
after slaughtering Tool sharing

Main issues on Animal Health and Husbandry
- African swine fever the most important production disease
(endemic, high mortality , and persistent outbreaks especially
during the dry season).
- Worms and ectoparasites (lice, mange, jiggers, flies and ticks)
also endemic and lead to LWG losses, and reduce market prices.
- Low efficacy of drugs, especially dewormers and antibiotics,
attributed by farmers to poor quality (“fake drugs”).
- Poor biosecurity on farm and along the value chain a major
constraint for controlling ASF outbreaks.
- Lack of knowledge on best management practices and
biosecurity measures pointed out by farmers
- Poor regulation and enforcement on disease control and drug
quality

Porcine cysticercosis
• Pork tapeworm, Taenia solium (T. solium) , a zoonosis
associated with pig farming and consumption of under-
cooked pork is endemic in Uganda.
• The infection affects swine as porcine cysticercosis, humans as
taeniosis, and human cysticercosis.
• The larval stage of the pork tapeworm, generally referred to
as T. solium cysticercosis , has for decades caused
unestimated suffering.
• It lowers economic productivity when it affects pigs and
causes direct human health defects.
• Pigs and causes direct human health defects

Epidemiology of the taeniosis-T. solium
cysticercosis complex (1)
• The taeniosis-T.solium cysticercosis complex probably occurs
in the whole country. Border towns (10-27%), Kaliro and
Kamuli (25%) (Nsadha et al, 2011; Nsadha et al, 2014).
• Kamuli, Mukono, Masaka (15.8%)(Kungu et al, 2015,
Unpublished).
• No estimated prevalence of taeniosis-T. solium cysticercosis in
humans
• Expected to be prominent in pig keeping communities
(Central ,41.1%; Western, 24.4%;Eastern ,22%; Northern
,10.7%; Karamoja, 1.8% (UBOS, 2008).

Epidemiology of the taeniosis-T. solium
cysticercosis complex (2)
• Distribution however influenced by variation of factors such
as management practices (free roaming), hygiene and
sanitation, consumption of undercooked pork, un-inspection
of pork, tapeworm carriers in vicinity.

Material and Methods
• A cross-sectional study was carried out from April to August 2013 in
Masaka, Mukono and Kamuli districts of Uganda to determine the
prevalence of the infection in pigs kept under urban and rural
production systems.
• A total of 1185 pigs sampled and their sera tested for presence of T.
solium cysticercosis antigen using the HP10 antigen-ELISA and
B158/B60 antigen-ELISA assays.
• A household questionnaire administered to pig owner to assess
potential risk factor for the infection.
• Using binomial logistic regression analysis (univariable and
multivariable), odds ratios determining association of the
potential risk factors with the infection were determined.

Prevalence findings
• Overall apparent sero-prevalence of porcine cysticercosis in
the 3 districts was 12.2% using parallel interpretation of the
results of HP10 antigen-ELISA (8.1%) and B158/B60 antigen-
ELISA (4.4%) tests respectively.
• The HP10 Ag-ELISA test had higher sensitivity (64.9%) and
lower Specificity (92.2%) compared to B158/B60 Ag-ELISA test
(Sensitivity=35.4%, Specificity=95.9%).
• By assuming conditional independence of the two tests
(McNemar χ2=13.83, P=0.0002), the overall estimated true
prevalence was 15.8%.
• The disease seropositivity in pigs varied from 0-54.3% in rural
villages and 5.9-25.3% in urban ones.

Toilets constructed near the pig pens
Toilets constructed near the pig
pens (open toilet without door)
Open toilet without door
Risk factors (1)
There were significant associations of T.
solium cysticercosis with the exotic and
crossbred pigs, unprotected water
sources, not boiling drinking water
and homesteads with family members
who are unable to use latrines.

Risk factors (2)
Most farmers in Masaka, Mukono and Kamuli
districts had an idea about the disease but could
not link taeniosis with human cysticercosis and
porcine cysticercosis which has made eradication of
the condition difficult.

Disease causal web

Conclusion
• This study has set a platform for more extensive research
about the disease dynamics in pigs and humans to enable
setting up appropriate control measures.
• Control of T. solium is feasible considering that a holistic
approach undertaken i.e combining therapeutic and measures
that limit the prevailing risk factors.

Acknowledgements
• Small Holder Pig Value Chain Development
Project funded by IFAD
• Safe Food-Fair Food Project (GIZ funded)
• ILRI CGIAR Livestock and Fish
• Agriculture for Nutrition and Health (A4NH)
• DAAD
• COVAB, Makerere University
• Researchers and farmers who participated in
this study.

CGIAR is a global partnership that unites organizations engaged in research for a food secure future. The CGIAR
Research Program on Livestock and Fish aims to increase the productivity of small-scale livestock and fish systems
in sustainable ways, making meat, milk and fish more available and affordable across the developing world.
CGIAR Research Program on Livestock and Fish
livestockfish.cgiar.org
EU/IFAD; ILRI; The team of facilitators; The local government authorities of Masaka, Mukono and
Kamuli districts; VEDCO in Kamuli