Staff Reporter<\/p>\n\n\n\n
GOVERNMENT will vaccinate cattle affected by the Foot-and-Mouth Disease (FMD) outbreak in the Karasburg area instead of culling them, Agriculture Minister Inge Zaamwani told the National Assembly today, while investigations continue into the source of the outbreak.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Zaamwani said Cabinet considered two options under the Animal Health Act for dealing with infected and exposed cattle: culling and vaccination.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
She said scientific advice indicated that culling is most effective when carried out within 24 to 48 hours of detecting the virus and when the outbreak is confined to a specific area.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
As more than seven days had passed since the virus was detected, Zaamwani said vaccination was now considered the most viable option.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cThe option and the most viable option is the condoning of that area and start with vaccination campaign, and that is what we are going to be doing,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Zaamwani said Government had available vaccine doses in the Zambezi Region that were being transported south, while officials were looking for suitable cold storage closer to the affected area. She said about 100,000 doses were available.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
NUDO MP Vetaruhe Kandorozu had asked Zaamwani what would happen to the 127 cattle that had tested positive for FMD and whether they would be vaccinated or culled and destroyed.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Kandorozu also questioned whether authorities had identified how the virus entered Namibia and raised concerns about NamWater reportedly cutting off water supplies to farmers affected by the outbreak.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Zaamwani said investigations into the source of the virus were ongoing and that authorities could not yet identify who or what had introduced it into Namibia.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
She said the first farm where the virus was detected was not directly on the border, although there were high-risk areas along the Orange River where cattle could sometimes graze on islands when water levels were low.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cThe investigations are ongoing by the various relevant authorities, but our focus now is to try and deal with the situation while the investigations are ongoing,\u201d Zaamwani said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
On water supply, Zaamwani said the issue had been brought to her attention by affected farmers and that she had spoken to NamWater\u2019s chief executive officer.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
She said NamWater\u2019s reduction or closure of water supplies in the area was not necessarily linked to the FMD outbreak, as the utility had been dealing with outstanding water payments for several years.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Zaamwani said she had connected NamWater with affected stakeholders to explore an agreement that could allow water supplies to be restored to some extent.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
She added that regional leaders were also engaging with NamWater on the matter.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cWe never want to close off water, especially right now during a situation of this nature. So we will work out a solution that will work for both parties,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Zaamwani also urged farmers and communities to assist by paying their NamWater accounts, saying the water supply dispute had existed for at least five years and was not caused by the current FMD outbreak.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Photo: NBC Digital News<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Staff Reporter GOVERNMENT will vaccinate cattle affected by the Foot-and-Mouth Disease (FMD) outbreak in the Karasburg area instead of culling them, Agriculture Minister Inge Zaamwani told the National Assembly today, while investigations continue into the source of the outbreak. Zaamwani said Cabinet considered two options under the Animal Health Act for dealing with infected and …<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":10,"featured_media":402022,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[24],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-402021","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-news"],"yoast_head":"\n