South Africa vaccinates 4.4 million livestock against FMD

South Africa is undertaking the largest vaccination campaign in its history to combat a foot-and-mouth disease outbreak, with nearly 4.4 million animals vaccinated nationwide and a significant financial commitment from the government. Agriculture Minister John Steenhuisen provided these details during a briefing on Monday, outlining a multi-faceted response aimed at containing the disease, protecting the livestock economy, and maintaining critical export markets.

Since February, the government has procured 13.5 million doses of vaccine and has spent R494 million on procurement and deployment. A further 3.5 million doses arrived last week, and regulatory approval has been granted for the importation of an additional 14 million doses to support required booster vaccinations. The minister described this as the largest vaccine acquisition programme ever undertaken by the state.

KwaZulu-Natal remains the epicentre of the vaccination campaign, with over 1.1 million animals vaccinated. Other provinces have also recorded significant progress, including the Eastern Cape with more than 720,000 vaccinations and the Free State with over 600,000. Minister Steenhuisen acknowledged the severe...