38,000 Vaccinations a Day? Ramaphosa’s Centralised FMD Plan Draws Fire from Critics

President Cyril Ramaphosa has officially classified the foot-and-mouth disease (FMD) outbreak as a national disaster, unveiling an ambitious plan to vaccinate 14 million cattle over the next 12 months. But rather than quelling criticism, the announcement has intensified it. Farmers, industry bodies, and even a recently removed expert are warning that the government’s insistence on a centralised, state-controlled response is a proven failureand one that will worsen the crisis.

Delivering his State of the Nation Address on Thursday evening, Ramaphosa acknowledged that South Africa is facing one of its worst FMD outbreaks on record. The disease has now spread to all nine provinces, with the Western and Northern Capes becoming the latest to impose quarantine measures. The president pledged to “mobilise all necessary capabilities within the state” and established a task team of farmer organisations and experts to report to him monthly.

The Math: 38,000 Animals a Day

To meet Ramaphosa’s target of 14 million vaccinations in 365 days, the state would need to inoculate 38,350 cattle every single day. While the president confirmed that private-sector players will assist with distribution, the procurement and rollout strategy remains firmly under state control. The ARC’s Onderstepoort facility is expected to ramp up production to 20,000 doses daily by March, supplemented by international purchases.

Critics argue the numbers simply don’t add upand that even if they did, the system is the wrong one.

“A Failed Policy of Centralisation”

AfriForum was swift and scathing in its response. Spokesperson Jacques Broodryk accused the president of “blindly continuing on his path of destruction” by persisting with a centralised model that has failed across multiple sectors. “The country now needs decentralisation and privatisation,” Broodryk stated. “This policy sits behind the problems in almost every area of society.”

The group’s central charge is that the state’s monopoly on vaccine procurement and distribution creates bottlenecks, delays, and inefficienciesexactly when speed and flexibility are most critical.

The Vaccine That Sat on a Shelf

Perhaps the most damaging critique came from a source once inside the tent. Dr Danie Odendaal, a veterinarian and FMD expert, was this week removed from the president’s task team after speaking to Farmers Weekly. His revelation: an effective FMD vaccine was developed in 2010 and registered in 2022, yet was never mass-produced.

“The fact is that they had this registered formulation and never contracted it out to be manufactured while the disease was still at an early stage,” Odendaal said. “It could have been stopped with ample effective vaccines.”

The department cited Odendaal’s breach of its Impartiality and Confidentiality Declaration for his removal. But the damage was done. The impression left is of a system that had the tools but lacked the willor the competenceto deploy them.

What’s at Stake

FMD does not typically kill adult animals, but it devastates livelihoods. Infected herds suffer lameness, weight loss, and plummeting milk production. More critically, outbreaks trigger international trade bans, closing lucrative export markets. Farmers face culling orders and financial ruin; consumers face higher meat prices.

The Red Meat Industry Services has warned that the virus now affects cattle, sheep, pigs, goats, and some game species. The longer containment fails, the deeper the economic scar.

The Central Question

Ramaphosa has declared FMD a disaster and set an audacious target. What he has not done is answer his critics’ central question: why should farmers trust a centralised system that sat on a vaccine for 12 years, that lost critical enforcement capacity during state capture, and that now proposes to move 38,000 needles a day through a single, state-controlled pipeline?

For the farmers watching their herds and their export contracts slip away, the president’s words offered recognition. What they are still waiting for is a plan that works.

{Source: Citizen}

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