BEIJING — China has made steady progress in the prevention and control of African swine fever, a senior official said on July 1.

A total of 143 cases of African swine fever had been reported in China as of June 30, said Vice-Minister of Agriculture and Rural Affairs Yu Xinrong at a news briefing, adding that the affected areas of 131 cases had been unblocked, while 25 provincial-level regions had unblocked all their affected areas.

As of the end of last month, the country had reported 44 outbreaks since the beginning of the year, maintaining a single-digit monthly occurrence except in April, according to Yu.

While intensifying epidemic monitoring and waste disposal, the country will step up efforts to prevent the spread of overseas outbreaks by strengthening quarantine inspection at ports of entry, Yu added.