As of the beginning of last week, the KwaZulu-Natal Department of Agriculture & Rural Development had administered one million Foot-and-Mouth Disease (FMD) vaccinations to cattle across the province, marking a major milestone in recovery efforts.

Vaccination teams have completed the campaign in four districts, namely uGu, Harry Gwala, uMkhanyakude and Zululand.

On May 25, veterinary services commenced in uMgungundlovu District.

The mass vaccination drive, which began late February, forms part of the national plan to vaccinate all 2.4 million cattle in KZN.

MEC for the department, Thembeni Madlopha-Mthethwa, commended the efforts of all vaccination teams.

“I am proud of our veterinary services. They are working tirelessly, having done vaccinations across four districts. They have administered a million vaccines to cattle, making us the only province to have done so since we started on February 26. Our next destination is uMgungundlovu District, and I am urging every livestock owner and the livestock associations to heed our call by bringing their cattle to our dip tanks to get vaccinated.”

Vaccination campaign expands across districts

Madlopha-Mthethwa added that newly recruited animal health technicians had joined the teams to strengthen the roll-out.

The department announced on May 5 that 60 additional animal health technicians were appointed to boost the administrative ability of teams vaccinating livestock on the ground.

“This employment will play a huge role in relieving the pressure on the veterinary-led teams.

“The so-called ‘nurses’ of the vet’s world help with vaccinations, work in vet diagnostic labs running samples, and also assist in data collection.

“The new recruits of animal health technicians (AHTs) under the Expanded Public Works Programme (EPWP) will augment the existing teams.”

She added that, “We only had 20 teams in the field, which is not enough to vaccinate all the animals on time. Our current animal health technicians are also overworked.

“To counter this, I have approved 60 new animal health technicians. This means we will go from 20 teams to 35 teams right away.”

The new recruits were hired on 12-month contracts, which can be renewed for up to three years.

Additional resources boost vaccination efforts

The department also acquired 48 vehicles to improve service delivery efforts.

Some of the cars went toward assisting veterinary-led operations doing vaccinations.

“It’s a daunting task for many of our veterinary services to access dip tanks, which are often situated in difficult terrain.

“These vehicles, which comprise 4×4 vehicles, will help us effectively navigate those areas and improve service delivery to our farmers,” said Madlopha-Mthethwa.

“This is a major step towards vaccinating all 2.4 million cattle in the province. I thank veterinary services for running the campaign efficiently, and private veterinarians for vaccinating most commercial farms. I commit to keep mobilising resources so we reach the target and restore the livestock industry to its pre-2021 state.

“This progress was made possible by strong collaboration between government and private partners.”

With 1,016,944 cattle vaccinated to date, the province’s estimated vaccination coverage now stands at 40%.

WA vaccine coverage of 80% is necessary to create the conditions for herd immunity to be conferred to the provincial cattle herd.

“This milestone has been made easier by a positive collaboration between the state and private role players. KwaZulu-Natal Farmers Union (Kwanalu), Milk Producers Organisation (MPO), Orange Grove Dairy and Tip Top Dairy have contributed positively to the fight against FMD in KwaZulu-Natal,” concluded Madlopha-Mthethwa.

Below are the FMD vaccination figures in each municipality in the Zululand District:

• Ulundi: 65,791;
• Pongola: 30,152;
• eDumbe: 21,689;
• Nongoma: 63,344;
• AbaQulusi: 79,000;
• Total: 259,976.

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