Ngamiland crawling with 'Foot and Mouth'

KETO SEGWAI | Friday July 25, 2008 00:00

 

The PPCB outbreak lead to a mass slaughter of more than 330,000 herd, leaving not only broken souls but also poverty in its wake. Its after-effects are still being felt today in that region: unpaid school fees, medical debts, lack of food, clothing and all.

Two years after the slaughter exercise, government began a painstaking restocking exercise that saw the re-introduction of about 60,000 herd to Ngamiland. 

The region has since built a herd to an admirable figure of more than 300,000 including the Okavango. With the highly competitive prices offered by the Botswana Meat Commission (BMC), the farmers were in for good times. But the good times were not to be. The farming communities were far from enjoying any prolonged benefit for their sweat.

Disaster struck last October when an outbreak of the perennial foot-and-mouth disease (FMD) was reported in the Habu extension area in Ngamiland or zone 2c in veterinary parlance. FMD in the area is normally spread through the interaction of livestock and buffaloe, which paradoxically, are immune to the disease.

The deputy director of Veterinary Services, Dr. Moetapele Letshwenyo confirmed that 'the disease has since spread to Tsau, Sehitwa, Kareng, Toteng and Bodibeng crushes.

The spread is attributable to the uncontrolled movement of cattle. This was exacerbated by torrential rains and poor management of cattle in the area. The disease affected only cattle, though FMD affects all cloven-hoofed animals'.

There are also new suspected cases of FMD at Mohembo crush in Shakawe district or zone 2a. 'Although the clinical manifestation is that of FMD, we await laboratory confirmation.

The disease remains restricted to just a few kraals in this crush, says Letshwenyo. They suspect it could come from the 'buffaloes in the Mohembo area, which are usually from Mahango National Park in Namibia'.

Letshwenyo, who effectively took over the campaign in April, explained that the outbreak was contained by among other measures intensive vaccination, livestock movement control, dipping and spraying of vehicles and shoes, and awareness campaigns.

'The movement of live cloven-hoofed animals out of, within and into the zone is banned. 

Movement of fresh products (meat and milk) into zone 2 is allowed, but under a permit.

Limited and controlled movement within zone 2 is also allowed.  Movement out of zone 2 is not allowed altogether. 

Heat processed products - movement is allowed into, within and out of zone 2,' Letshwenyo pointed out.

The implementation of these measures had at times been trying for both the authorities and the public. A particular incident that took place between Nokaneng and Gumare during the December festive season stands out. 

Rolls well-matured and marinated boerewors, and other meaty goodies were impounded from South African tourists at a roadblock on the outskirts of Gumare. 

They were en-route to Shakawe and beyond, at the time unaffected by the outbreak. 

Negotiations, punctuated by pleas and expletives having failed, the disheartened travel party took off, but after a while one burly, enraged tourist returned and demanded to see the confiscated bounty which he proceeded to spray with urine. 

'If I can't eat it, nobody should,' he must have been saying.

But as Letshwenyo explained, the problem was that the meat had traversed the 'infected zone, the area where clinical disease is occurring within Ngamiland, and this can potentially spread disease and it will also encourage illegal movement of meat from cattle that may be infected'.

In some rare instances, the personnel at the roadblocks can be unfair. For instance, a Maun newspaper reported a case in which fish was impounded from a man. He was smart enough to return later to demand his now well cooked fish. 

However, various community leaders from chiefs to politicians, interestingly of different political persuasions, put the spread on the doorstep of the veterinary authorities. They roundly accuse the authorities of a lackluster attitude when dealing with the control and containment of livestock disease in the region. Some have gone as far as reading conspiracy on the part of government, accusing it of trying to turn the whole region into a massive wildlife management area.

To illustrate what he termed the shoddy handling of the October 2007 FMD outbreak, a Tsau farmer, who preferred anonymity, recalled an incident in which cattle quarantined at Kgomokgwana Camp for artificial insemination broke out and trekked close to 100 km for days. 

The herd, which was supposed to be under the vigilant eye of the AI camp personnel ultimately got mixed up with his cattle. This was during the outbreak of the disease. 
The AI workers trekked them to his moraka some weeks later, and ended up quarantining them at his cattle crushes without his express permission. FMD was subsequently detected among his livestock. He decided to forgive them. 

Kgosi Kea Lempadi of Shakawe, who had just been briefed by the veterinary officials on the Okavango cases when Mmegi paid him a visit, was scathing in his comments. 'We strongly feel there is widespread inefficiency on the part of the veterinary officers, particularly when it comes to our region. There is no maintenance of the Buffalo Fence. 

We have long called for the electrification of that fence but in vain. Even more worrisome is the likelihood of the CBPP cattle-lung disease re-introduction into the area from Namibia. That will be a sad day indeed,' he fumed.

Kgosi Lempadi noted that the Botswana-Namibia border is neither properly maintained nor patrolled. There is a Botswana Defence Force (BDF) base in the village.

He contrasted the current hive of veterinary activities at a regional border of Kuke that separates Ngamiland from the Gantsi District, with what pertained during the Habu outbreak. 

The Member of Parliament for Okavango, Vistor Moruti, concurred pointing out that 'the problem lies with the officers on the ground who deliberately misinform their superiors and ministers to cover for their inefficiency. The buffalo fence and the Botswana-Namibia border fence are rarely maintained. I think there should be a thorough investigation into this situation'.

In the aftermath of the cattle-lung disease outbreak and the ensuing chaotic fatal response, a commission of enquiry was instituted whose findings are yet to be publicly known.

The Botswana Congress Party (BCP) parliamentary candidate for Ngami, Taolo Habano, noted that 'our FMD campaign is not as vigorous as that of either Matsilojoe or Bobonong. When there was an outbreak at Habu, they did not even cordon off the affected area. That should have been the first response'.

Habano, a former superintendent of works at the Department of Animal Health and Production, suggested that practically there should be a double cordon fence, which is livestock proof. There should also be zonal control areas; the red, yellow and green zones, he added.

Tipster Modimoosi, the Botswana National Front (BNF) parliamentary aspirant for Ngami pointed out that the authorities should have in place better disease control programs given that the majority of the residents are dependant on agriculture, particularly animal husbandry. 

The Member of Parliament for Maun West, Ronald Ridge, while decrying chaotic implementation of the vaccination campaign, wondered why buffalo, which are carriers of the virus, seem to be immune from FMD. Goats, sheep and other cloven-hoofed animals are also rarely infected. 

'Our agricultural researchers should be working very hard to produce breeds that are at least immune to FMD,' Ridge challenged. Letshwenyo attributed the sorry state of affairs primarily to flooding and elephants. More than 150,000 roam the Chobe-Ngamiland region.

But he maintained that the fences are maintained and the borders are patrolled.
'Since the great floods that even filled Lake Ngami, access to the buffalo fence by veterinary fencing teams has been restricted. However, the fence on accessible parts is well maintained. Frequent breakage of the fence by elephants presents the single greatest challenge. We try our best but urge farmers to do their part by stopping their cattle moving towards the fence as they used to do in the past.

'As far as we know, the border fence is well maintained and patrolled by veterinary officials. The challenge is the daily breakages by elephant moving between the two countries and smuggling of donkeys between the two countries,'  Letshwenyo said.

However, following the messy implementation in the initial stages of the exercise, the department appears to be getting their act together. The Minister of Agriculture, Christian de Graaff recently toured the region to announce farmer financial assistance schemes. 

Dr. Letshwenyo said 'most meat consumed in Ngamiland is sourced from the un-affected areas of the region at Haina Veldt, Chanoga, Shorobe and Maun areas which have not been affected by the clinical disease'.

Until then, it had been a major challenge for most residents to host a funeral or a wedding because meat had to be shipped mainly from the Boteti district. And the butchery owners were the hardest hit. A relieved Maun butcher, Mooka Moetse confirmed that 'the situation has greatly improved. We were facing imminent foreclosure'.