MoA lifts ban on movement of cloven-hoofed animals
Goitsemodimo Kaelo | Friday January 20, 2017 14:53
Buffaloes are known to be carriers of the Foot and Mouth Disease (FMD). Although the outbreak of FMD was never confirmed, the ban was put in place as a precautionary measure to contain the potential effects of a FMD outbreak on the overall beef industry.
In a statement released on Wednesday, the ministry said farmers intending to move live cloven-hoofed animals in and out of Zone 6a and Zone 3c to the rest of the country should acquire a veterinary permit. The order also lifted a ban on the movement of fresh products in and out of zones 6a and 3c and does not require one to acquire a permit.
“The movement of live cloven-hoofed animals within zones 6a and 3c to registered feedlots and slaughter abattoirs is allowed with a permit,” reads the statement. In November 2016, the Department of Wildlife and National Parks (DWNP) killed seven buffalos and dispersed others and elephants, which were spotted in Tutume and Sepako.
The animals were suspected to be from Zimbabwe and the outskirts of Sepako. It was also suspected that they were driven outside their bases by lack of drinking water. Most of the FMD outbreaks have been blamed on cross-border stock-theft and the free movement of cattle and buffaloes from Zimbabwe, which has failed to control the disease for over a decade due to a worsening economic crisis.
This has forced government to impose a shoot to kill order on Zimbabwean cattle that stray across the border, as a way of tightening disease control, especially FMD, which frequently breaks out along the border.
“I have interaction with the ministries in Zimbabwe and I can tell you that they agree that this is necessary and not just for Zimbabwe, but all the countries that we share borders with, that have FMD problems,” said minister Patrick Ralotsia in a previous interview. The “shoot to kill” policy replaced the practice of returning stray Zimbabwean cattle across the border.