16 Mar 2014

Parliament has been informed that it is not possible to state the exact number of cattle that crossed into zone 16 in 2013.

Answering a question from Member of Parliament for Ngami, Mr Taolo Habano, the Assistant Minister of Agriculture Mr Oreeditse Molebatsi said this was because several sections of the buffalo fence remained inaccessible for patrols and it was through these areas that cattle find their way into zone 16.

He however indicated that aerial reconnaissance and reports by tour operators did report several heads of cattle in zone 16.

Mr Molebatsi said cattle cross into the delta through breaks in the fence caused by wildlife especially elephants but also other species such as hippos, giraffes and buffaloes, adding that some breaks do remain inaccessible for maintenance due to heavy flooding.

“Vandalism of fence is also a major problem and is usually done by poachers or desperate farmers seeking better grazing in zone 16,” said the minister.

An unknown number of buffaloes did cross the buffalo fence from zone 16 into livestock areas in Shorobe (Mawana area) and about twenty buffaloes were eventually killed, he said.

Minister Molebatsi told the House that the disposal of carcasses of both cattle and buffaloes was by burning the carcasses to ashes.

He indicated that it was likely that most of the herd eventually returned to zone 16 as there were no new buffalo sightings and as part of standard routine, owners whose cattle had been killed were identified, informed and compensated.

Mr Molebatsi said it was impossible to completely prevent buffalo incursions into livestock areas or cattle into wildlife areas so long as the predisposing factors remain prevalent; such as flooding, elephant damage and vandalism of cordon fences.

He said his ministry would continue to engage stakeholders like the Ministry of Environment, Wildlife and Tourism and farmers to look into ways of managing wildlife and other issues surrounding control of foot and mouth disease.He further informed Parliament about the existence of Ngamiland foot and mouth disease stakeholder forum which was chaired by the permanent secretary in the Ministry of Agriculture.

Mr Molebatsi said the forum touched on farmers, Farmer’s associations, various government departments and non-governmental organisations.

“The forum meets every six months specifically to address the FMD problem in Ngamiland,” he said.

MP Habano had asked the minister how many cattle crossed into the buffalo fence (zone 16) in 2013, how they crossed the buffalo fence and whether buffaloes that crossed the fence were all killed.

The minister was also to state the method used to dispose carcasses if they were shot and if the owners were identified and informed and whether his ministry has plans to prevent the same incidence from recurring. ENDS