BANJUL - The UN Food and Agricultural Organization (FAO) has send a delegation to Gambia to tackle the cattle disease that is affecting the herds in some parts of the country, the Gambian Ministry of Agriculture announced Monday.

The FAO delegation came to Banjul at the request of the ministry.

"The officials are in the country to survey the damages caused by the disease and to tackle the continuous outbreaks of the disease which is affecting many herds and farmers in the West African nation," said Dr Babagana Ahmed, FAO Representative in Gambia.

Ian Douglas, head of the mission to Banjul, said they would visit the affected parts of the country within five days to discuss with the farmers and herdsmen in order to address the ongoing cattle disease.

The delegation would also talk about the matter with government officials, added Douglas.

"The outbreak can be caused by the type of food they consumed or the climate change, but we will know (the reason) during our five days' survey in the country," Douglas said.

Cattle disease once occurred in Gambia in 1978, causing a lot of damages to the farmers and herdsmen.