Auditor General exposes Rs. 200mn wastage in livestock breeding and vaccine projects

The Auditor General has issued a stinging critique of the Department of Animal Production and Health (DAPH), flagging over Rs. 200 million in public funds tied up in failed breeding projects and questionable equipment procurement, in a detailed report for the year ended December 31, 2024.

- By NISHEL FERNANDO

The audit highlighted a state-funded initiative to import high-quality 'Boer' goats from Australia as a "futile expenditure," noting that the project had largely collapsed due to disease and poor planning.

The project, initiated in 2019 with an investment of Rs. 37.3 million to import 100 breeder goats, aimed to release 250 high-quality animals to the field within five years. However, the initiative was crippled by an outbreak of Caprine Arthritis Encephalitis (CAE), a viral disease that infected the herd during the quarantine period.