FMD Now in All Nine Provinces: Nearly 1,000 Outbreaks as Government Rolls Out Mass Vaccination

South Africa’s foot-and-mouth disease (FMD) outbreak has now spread to all nine provinces, with 932 outbreaks formally reported to the World Organisation for Animal Health (WOAH)and the true number likely higher.

Agriculture Minister John Steenhuisen told MPs that vaccination efforts are now fully operational across provinces following the arrival of additional consignments.

“Vaccination is under way across all provinces,” he said.

The Numbers

The breakdown reported to WOAH shows:

• Free State: 277 outbreaks

• KwaZulu-Natal: 202 outbreaks

• Gauteng: 195 outbreaks

• North West: 119 outbreaks

• Mpumalanga: 79 outbreaks

• Eastern Cape: 33 outbreaks

• Limpopo: 23 outbreaks

• Western Cape: 3 outbreaks

• Northern Cape: 1 outbreak

Total: 935 outbreaks

But the department told MPs these figures understate the scale of infection. Confirmed cases continue to rise, and the true number of outbreaks exceeds those reported to WOAH because of reporting processes and pending laboratory confirmations.

“The number of cases is increasing across provinces, with many suspected infections still awaiting laboratory confirmation,” said Dr Botlhe Modisane, ministerial advisory task team member on animal disease prevention and control.

The Vaccine Rollout

Steenhuisen confirmed that 1 million doses procured from Argentina have been released into the field after regulatory and logistical delays were resolved. A further 1.5 million doses from Dollvet in Türkiye have arrived and are being distributed.

Total available supply: 2.5 million doses.

“It is that scale and speed that we need across the country,” Steenhuisen said.

Provincial Progress

• Free State: 119,300 animals vaccinated; 35 roving roadblocks; 19 joint operations committees

• North West: 61,225 cattle vaccinated

• KwaZulu-Natal: 11,494 animals vaccinated

• Western Cape: 13,913 animals vaccinated; daily roadblocks; R100m allocated

• Gauteng: 1,700 animals vaccinated

• Limpopo: 17,000 animals vaccinated; R45m business case submitted

The Risk Zones

The vaccination campaign is guided by a municipal-level risk model. Municipalities are classified as:

• Tier 1 (Emergency): 10km radius of declared outbreaks. Ring vaccination within 48-72 hours; 100% coverage target; 1-million-dose vaccine bank retained.

• Tier 2 (Endemic/Primary risk): KZN, Gauteng, North West, parts of Free State. Biannual mass vaccination campaigns.

• Tier 3 (Buffer/Secondary zones): Targeted herd vaccination and enhanced surveillance.

The department estimates 12.49 million cattle fall within identified risk categories:

• 3.76 million in primary zones (30%)

• 7.21 million in secondary zones (58%)

• 1.53 million in tertiary zones (12%)

KZN accounts for 1.6 million cattle in primary zones, followed by the Free State (659,125) and Eastern Cape (508,454).

Vaccine Allocation

Of the 2.5 million doses:

• 10% set aside for emergencies in Western Cape, Northern Cape, and Limpopo

• 90% (2.25 million doses) allocated to primary priority areas

KZN will receive 43% of primary allocations, the Free State 18% , and Eastern Cape 14% .

The Bottom Line

FMD is now in every province. The outbreaks are spreading. The vaccine doses are arriving. The question is whether the scale and speed of the response can match the scale and speed of the disease.

With nearly 1,000 outbreaks and millions of cattle at risk, the stakes could not be higher.

{Source: BusinessDay}

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