http://www.mmegi.bw/index.php?...13/February/Friday15


No buffaloes no FMD - expert


BAME PIET
Staff Writer


A veterinarian with the World Health for Animals (OIE), Dr Neo Mapitse has cautioned that Botswana will not win the fight against Foot and Mouth Disease (FMD) as long as there are buffaloes in the country.


He was making a presentation before the Parliamentary Special Select Committee investigating the decline of the beef sector in Botswana. Dr Mapitse, who is also sub-regional representative for Southern Africa, is based in Gaborone. The committee is chaired by Ngwaketse West MP Mephato Reatile and comprises of MPs Frank Ramsden, Moeng Pheto, Gilson Saleshando, Taolo Habano, John Toto, Gilbert Mangole, Kagiso Molatlhegi, Prince Maele, and Parliamentary counsel Thebe Ramokhua.

Dr Mapitse, a former employee of the Department of Veterinary Services (DVS), said that since buffaloes are here to stay, the best thing the country can do is to maintain the infrastructure that controls the movement of wildlife to the satisfaction of OIE standards. He said Botswana made a good decision to zone the country and it would be important to maintain fences to control animal movement. IOE is an international organisation that specialises in animal health, food safety and plant health, and has a membership of close to 180 member states. Among the members is the European Union (EU) which provides a lucrative market for Botswana beef albeit with stringent requirements.

Dr Mapitse cautioned that once an area is declared an FMD zone, it takes a difficult process to declare it safe, as that could take many years of monitoring. He said member states invite the OIE to conduct assessments in their jurisdictions, hence they are obliged to comply with the OIE standards with the assistance of other partners such as the International Monetary Fund (IMF), World Bank, United Nations Food and Agricultural Organisation (FAO), African Development Bank (AfDB) and others.

He said that the Botswana government, through its DVS has participated fully at SADC region and continental level, but would not state whether she has implemented the OIE standards in recent years. "For us to ascertain that the country has complied, we will have to make a follow-up mission, at the request of the country, something we haven't done," he said. He said since 2009/2010, Botswana has not invited OIE to give advice on their findings to enable OIE to link her with organisations such as IMF, AfDB and others. Quizzed on what steps the OIE can take if a country is not complying, he said there isn't much they can do except to go for a specific problem area.For instance, they can withdraw a certificate against a non-compliant laboratory, or a zone until it has complied.

Dr Mapitse explained that trading partners can enter into agreement on trading requirements, either below or above the OIE standards for as long as there are safety guarantees from the exporting country to the importing one. He said that the EU has set higher standards for beef exports, but that does not stop any exporting country from entering into bilateral negotiations with individual countries for the requirements to be relaxed.On whether the BMC abattoir in Lobatse is still the best on the African continent, Dr Mapitse said that it has to meet requirements such as clear monitoring of cattle from kraals to slaughter, cold storage and exporting. "There are many requirements, some of which may seem small and irrelevant, but it is these small things that matter a lot," he said.

The committee sought clarity over a recent conflict between the DVS and the Botswana Vaccine Institute (BVI) which involved the use of purified vaccine to control FMD in the Okavango. He said vaccination is a complex process that should be administered with utmost care and intended goal in compliance with drug-handling, storage and transportation standards. He wondered whether the parties had a clear objective for the vaccination, and urged the committee to quiz BVI why it still faces many challenges in the era of technology and information sharing. He said that as a Motswana working for a reputable organisation, he has offered advice where needed, linked DVS with other international organisations and financiers, adding that the country could benefit a lot if it used his experience.The hearing continues on Monday.

Well, shutting down hunting should take care of that in a few years. Worked fairly well in Kenya after all.

Dean

quote:

Originally posted by maki:
Well, shutting down hunting should take care of that in a few years. Worked fairly well in Kenya after all.

Dean

My thoughts exactly! End hunting, wildlife disappears. Problem solved!???

Idiots.

Why not just remove the cattle. Buffalo are indigenous, cattle, however, aren't unique or worth saving. You could remove the people in the govt while you're at it too, they're not unique or worth saving either.