KwaZulu-Natal’s agri MEC took to the province in an awareness blitz on Tuesday, in a bid to help stop the spread of foot-and-mouth disease (FMD).
Provincial agriculture and rural development minister Bongiwe Sithole-Moloi first led a vaccination drive in the KwaNyuswa area in eThekwini and then joined officials at a nearby roadblock to share information with motorists.
Her awareness blitz follows the announcement last week by national agriculture, land reform and rural development minister Thoko Didiza that a total ban on the movement of cattle would be effective for 21 days to curb the further spread of the highly infectious disease.
The disease is currently present in more than 100 locations in the country, including farms, feedlots and communal areas in KwaZulu-Natal, Limpopo, North West, Gauteng, Mpumalanga and the Free State.
The MEC told attendees at the vaccination event that FMD has a considerable negative impact on the general well-being of the community, with a filter-down effect to poorer communities.
Critical to have animals vaccinated
She emphasised the importance of vaccinations in disease management areas, and the importance of following up a first dose with a second dose six to eight weeks later.
“The vaccine coverage should be at least 80% of the total livestock population in the area. To achieve the 80% coverage, there is a need to embark on mass, intensive vaccination campaigns in affected areas.”
Along with the vaccinations, animals also need to be ear-tagged and f-branded correctly and then kept in the disease management area for the rest of their productive lives.
The minister said that the province had first started its intensive vaccination campaigns in March this year and, hand in hand with livestock associations, has vaccinated over 250 000 animals from over 300 dip tanks to date.
Now, the vaccination campaign kicks off in eThekwini, which has 20 000 cattle from 24 dip tanks. Due to another positive case, seven dip tanks in uMgungundlovu will also be targeted.
Other campaigns take a back seat
Sithole-Moloi pleaded for cooperating from farmers, saying that the spread of FMD has had far-reaching consequences, including other primary animal healthcare campaigns such as rabies vaccinations being put on the backburner.
“Over R85 million to control FMD has been spent since the outbreak. An estimated R128 million is needed to control the disease and to address post-recovery vaccination,” she added.
“Livestock owners and speculators in the affected areas are not allowed to sell their animals, [there’s a] ban on importation of cloven-hoofed animals and their products by other countries, and livestock associations are affected as … they heavily rely on income from livestock through selling and performing cultural activities.”
She reiterated that the disease is spreading rapidly and appealed to farmers and other livestock owners to adhere to the 21-day ban.
ALSO READ: SA battles 116 FMD outbreaks amid 21-day cattle ban
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