16 Oct 2023

The Botswana Vaccine Institute (BVI) and the National Agricultural Research and Development Institute (NARDI) will undertake a research study on senkobo disease in Ngamiland.

The ultimate goal of the study will be to significantly reduce the incidence of tick- and tick-borne disease thereby reducing the impact of diseases such as senkobo on livestock productivity.

BVI chief executive officer, Mr Andrew Madeswi, confirmed this when giving an update on the said research during the launch of Topline dip aimed to control senkobo in Boro recently.

Mr Madeswi said they had now positioned themselves to be a company that assisted in the wider spectrum of animal health. The institute, he said, had undertaken a deliberate approach of evolving from just being a vaccine supplier to today offering its complete solutions through its total customer value proposition.

“We believe that through this total customer value proposition we will be able to truly help African countries unlock their livestock potential and bring return on investments for African farmers,” he added.

Mr Madeswi said in addition to the facilitation of the supply of the dip being launched, the BVI and  NARDI would further conduct a study to be able to determine all risk factors associated with emergence and spread of senkobo disease in Botswana.

The study, he said, would be undertaken in a phased approach, with the initial phase focused on understanding the type of ticks and other vectors prevalent in the area, their distribution and the type of animals that they infest.

The second phase of the study would evaluate current interventions that have been implemented to control senkobo in the region with the objective to find innovative and effective strategies to eradicate the disease from the region.

Mr Madeswi said the study would further evaluate the efficacy of dip formulations available in the market with the view to find a product or products that would be safe, effective and affordable to the farmer. “We expect that the outcomes of this research study will contribute towards increased livestock productivity (more meat and milk yields; good quality skins and hides) and increased household incomes to meet social obligations,” he added.

The outcome of the study also was expected to contribute towards increased beef exports contributing to positive Gross Domestic Product (GDP) growth and poverty reduction as well as sustainable food security among others. Giving a brief history of senkobo disease in Botswana, Mr Madeswi explained that the disease had historically been confined to the Chobe District where environmental conditions were favourable for the proliferation of the bont tick.

 With increased climate change, ticks and other vectors, the disease had been able to translocate and establish in areas that they ordinarily would not have been found. Over the past year Ngamiland has been invaded by the bont tick which has facilitated the establishment and spread of Senkobo disease, resulting in massive livestock diseases.

In addition to the increased prevalence of the bont tick, Mr Madeswi said there were probably other factors that were unique to the Ngamiland ecosystem that may have contributed to the establishment of Senkobo disease in this region.

However, some farmers in the region suspected that the tick causing senkobo could have brought by influx of high elephant population invading human settlement causing havoc.

Farmers’ representative, Mr Boletile Sethapelo, welcomed the study saying it would reveal the root cause of the disease. Many farmers at Boro, Shorobe and Daunara residing adjacent to the Okavango Delta, he said were crying foul and having suspicions that the disease could be as result of elephant interaction with humans.

“We suspected that the tick causing the disease is in the delta because it is humid and it is multiplying,” he said. “We thank the institutions for coming together to conduct a research to get to the bottom of the problem with a hope to find lasting. ENDS