19 Jan 2020

Mid 2019  was such a joyful moment when the government declared Zone Seven Foot and Mouth Disease (FMD) free without Vaccine.

After many years of battling this disease at Zone Seven, farmers finally embraced this decision, which was likely to transform their lives for the better.

Prior to this declaration, farmers at Zone Seven, which covers Bobirwa, Selebi Phikwe and some parts of Mmadinare areas, succumbed to strict livestock movement control.

They could not sell their livestock to the abattoirs where prices were quite impressive compared to local butcheries, neither could they move their hoofed livestock to green zones. 

Products such as meat and milk were not allowed to cross to other zones. The situation was worse for farmers whose infected cattle were killed by the veterinary services department during that period.

This exercise was undertaken amid complaints by farmers that the exercise would leave them impoverished.

The last FMD outbreak was in 2011. 

“Our problem was cattle from neighbouring Zimbabwe, which spread the disease to our side,” said Kgosi Keabetswe Mokgethi of Gobojango.

He welcomed government’s decision to declare Zone Seven green, saying that it would better the lives of farmers and their families.

Kgosi Mokgethi said he however expected the new regulations by veterinary services department to be more lax than the previous one.

He said this was further going to impoverish farmers as livestock movement was still restricted. 

The government however still viewed Zimbabwe as threat to the zone, hence measures had been put in place to keep the zone clean, hence beef from Zone Seven is only consumed within the country.

Livestock movement from Zone Seven to other zones still remains restricted except in cases where livestock goes for slaughter at the abattoirs. 

Kgosi Mokgethi said these restrictions could be changed over time if the community of Bobirwa could help government in taking care of the cordon fence.

He encouraged his people to report any livestock from Zimbabwe to the veterinary officers, adding that such livestock would be destroyed.

Livestock from Botswana on the other hand will also be destroyed on entry of the Zimbabwean border, he added.

However, Kgosi Mokgethi said the community’s efforts to take care of the cordon fence had been thwarted by marauding elephants in their area. 

He said there was a high elephant population in the area, which made it impossible for the community to patrol the area.

Adding to the farmers’ woes is the growing cross-border theft of stock by Zimbabweans, which compound further the troubles bedevilling cattle industry in Bobirwa.

“Our people have lost a lot of cattle as a result of stock theft. 

The sad thing is that even if the police find your cattle they cannot cross into Botswana side as the Zimbabwean officials also destroy our cattle as a measure to mitigate against FMD outbreak.”

Kgosi Mokgethi sadly explained that Babirwa could neither raise livestock nor grow crops as a result of elephants and stock theft.

He said the governments of Botswana and Zimbabwe should work together to enhance the fight against stock theft. 

“The situation is so bad that we have also observed that there is also poaching going on in the area, so our wild animals are also under threat.”

Kgosi Bethuel Machete of Mothabaneng also welcomed the government’s declaration, saying that it was going to make life better for the people of Bobirwa. 

He said some farmers had managed to sell their livestock to lucrative outside markets, hence getting better returns than before.

Semolale police Assistant Superintendent Seitiketso Mpusetsang confirmed that there was a serious challenge of cross- border theft, adding that the police so far recorded 43 cases.

He said the police had held meetings with farmers in various areas, encouraging them to enhance taking care of their livestock.

He said since the beginning of 2019 until mid-December, 599 cattle had been stolen including 162 goats, 22 sheep and 16 donkeys and only 53 cattle had been recovered. ends