30 Jan 2019

A delegation from South Africa is expected to visit Ngamiland District to inspect all disease control measures to ensure compliance on issues of animal health control.

The delegation will also inspect the Makalamabedi Quarantine Camp to see if it is in a good condition to export beef.
Principal public relations officer from the Department of Agriculture in Ngamiland, Mr Clifford Molefe confirmed the visit by the South African team in an interview, adding that they expected them to arrive in March this year.

He noted that South Africa had been the sole buyer of Ngamiland beef until exports were stopped due to the outbreak of Foot and Mouth Disease (FMD).

Mr Molefe said it was important to ensure that they met the required standards in order to continue with beef exports.

He said the Makalamabedi camp was ready to accommodate cattle as they had managed to repair some of the paddocks through assistance and support from the Ministry of Agricultural Development and Food Security and UNDP.

The ministry, he said, spent P2 million on the project while UNDP augmented their efforts to the tune of P250 000 to maintain four paddocks out of 10. Of the 10 paddocks, two are used for artificial insemination while one is for residential purposes.

“The quarantine has been ready since last year and we are expecting farmers to bring animals any time,” he added.

Mr Molefe said farmers were happy with the maintenance of the quarantine camp as they believed it was one way of controlling disease outbreaks in the district, particularly FMD.

He said Botswana advocates for community based trade as it would facilitate management of diseases and trade in animal products.

Community based trade is an array of alternatives that can be used to ensure that the production and processing beef products are managed so that animal health hazards are reduced to appropriate risk levels.

Mr Molefe said Botswana

He said revival of the quarantine camp was one of the components which completed community based trade. Ends