Xavier Radio Ug News 24 7
Lack of a border fence between South Africa and Zimbabwe and broken redline fences are compounding the spread of foot and mouth disease (FMD), in Limpopo. This is according to Agriculture Minister John Steenhuisen.
Steenhuisen led the fourth nationwide mass vaccination roll-out campaign against the foot and mouth disease, in Polokwane. The campaign has been rolled out in Gauteng, Free State and KwaZulu-Natal.
RELATED VIDEO | Foot-and-mouth disease | Vaccination drive moves to Gauteng
Minister Steenhuisen says stray buffaloes from Zimbabwe and the Kruger National Park are some of the major sources of the foot and mouth disease in Limpopo. African buffaloes are natural hosts and carriers of the foot and mouth disease virus. The porous borders between South Africa and Zimbabwe allows free movement of animals between the two countries. Elephants that migrate from Zimbabwe in search of grazing and suitable habitant also break down the veterinary cordon fence, commonly known as the redline fence.
Agriculture Minister John Steenhuisen is set to lead a foot and mouth vaccination drive in Polokwane, Limpopo. pic.twitter.com/4OjbyAcRrf
— SABC News (@SABCNews) March 16, 2026
“Limpopo is one of those provinces that will always require some form of prophylactic vaccination at its interface. It has two major challenges. The first is Zimbabwe, as many of the infections we encounter come from across the border. The second is the border area at Kruger National Park, where the buffalo are carriers of FMD. When fences are broken by elephants or other animals, the buffalo escape, leading to cross-contamination with cattle. This obviously creates a unique problem in Limpopo, Mpumalanga, and KwaZulu-Natal,” says Steenhuisen.
Steenhuisen says they are planning on vaccinating over 80% of cattle countrywide by the end of 2026, with the new doses set to arrive soon.
WATCH | Minister of Agriculture John Steenhuisen kicks off a mass vaccination drive against foot-and-mouth disease in KwaZulu-Natal and briefs the media. pic.twitter.com/RIiClozUVU
— SABC News (@SABCNews) February 27, 2026
Agriculture Minister John Steenhuisen says they aim to vaccinate 80% of the national herd of 14 million cattle by the end of the year, which is expected to reduce the number of cases of foot and mouth by 70%. pic.twitter.com/X0A10SP9hY
— SABC News (@SABCNews) February 28, 2026
“We are now waiting for the big shipment of vaccines to arrive in South Africa from Biogenesis and from Dolve five million and six million and therefore then really gives us a scale and reach that we need to hit our target of vaccinating 80% of the national herd by December this year. What that will do is reduce the incidents of FMD by around 70%,” he adds.
Meanwhile, farmer Tommie Van Zyl has hailed the Nguni cattle breed for its resilience and strong resistance to foot and mouth disease.
“Without a doubt, the Nguni has been exposed to foot and mouth disease for millennia and because of that, they are more resilient. We have a group here of 70 bulls, comprising Nguni and the crossbreed Bonsmara. All of them had symptoms, but the expression of the symptoms was worse in the Bonsmara and least in the Nguni. We first saw symptoms on the 3rd of February and by the 17th they were no longer showing signs. You can even see now that none of the Nguni are limping,” says Van Zyl.
The mass vaccination drive is expected to be rolled out across the Limpopo province with immediate effect.
RELATED VIDEO | Foot and Mouth Disease | One million FMD vaccines arrives in SA
www.sabcnews.com, https://www.sabcnews.com/sabcnews/lack-of-fences-between-sa-and-zim-compounding-fm-spread-steenhuisen/
