Ngamiland losing FMD battle

Correspondent | Monday April 27, 2015 17:52

Speaking to Ngamiland District councillors in Maun recently, Fedelis Molao said on average, vaccination in the whole district stands at 57 percent. He said recent inspections revealed that out of the 118 cattle inspected in one crush, only six had proof of vaccination against FMD, which translates into seven percent. During that survey, he said officers discovered 13 cases of FMD in the Maxebo, 11 in Mokgalo  and 35 in Motopi II crushes.

He said that since the outbreak FMD, 59 cases were recorded in Ngamiland, some discovered in the Kareng area in the Maxebo and Lekurwane crushes.

“This low vaccinated cattle percentage is of great concern to us and I must admit that still in the on-going vaccination, overall coverage is not as good as it should be. An average of 85 per cent would be regarded as good, however in this area vaccination coverage was at around 57 per cent. It has therefore become apparent that among others, the major contributing factor to the outbreak is that farmers are not playing their role fairly well,” said Molao.

The assistant minister added that “the overall coverage is not as good as it should be… It has therefore become apparent that among others the major contributing factor to the outbreaks is that farmers are not playing their role fairly well”.

He said that in order for the Ministry of Agriculture to succeed on FMD management, farmers have to bringing their cattle for vaccination.