For the first time, South Africa has a long-term Foot and Mouth Disease (FMD) strategy to take it to FMD-free status, eventually without vaccination.

Agriculture Minister John Steenhuisen on January 14 announced the Department of Agriculture’s (DoA’s) ten-year phased plan starting with stabilisation, progressing to consolidation and eventually removal of vaccination.  

The plan starts with immediate mass vaccination in hotspot provinces, targeting the vaccination of 90% of South Africa’s commercial cattle, 80% of communal cattle and 100% of feedlots and dairy cattle within 12 months.

Vaccines from Argentina, Botswana and Türkiye will be used, which will be supplemented by State-owned veterinary vaccine producer Onderstepoort Biological Products’ local production of 20 000 doses a week from March.

The local facility is expected to increase its vaccine production toward a 960 000-dose capacity target.

Steenhuisen expects the country to receive five-million vaccine doses through imports by March.

The department has submitted applications to the South African Health Products Regulatory Authority to authorise the importation and registration of the Biogenesis vaccine.

Steenhuisen confirms that more than two-million cattle have been vaccinated since the current FMD outbreak started in 2022. It is estimated that the livestock industry has suffered R5.6-billion in export losses as a result of FMD since the start of 2025.

He adds that the department will soon submit, to Cabinet, a memorandum to declare FMD as a National State of Disaster, which will enable government to rapidly deploy national resources for supplies, equipment, vehicles and facilities to support the fight against FMD and enact directives and regulations in a more timeous manner, as well as enhance government’s powers to regulate the movement of livestock.

The department has been strengthening the national laboratory network through the Agricultural Research Council (ARC) to increase diagnostic capacity and ensure timely test results across State laboratories.

The department has also started implementing a digital livestock identification and traceability system in partnership with the Council for Scientific and Industrial Research and Red Meat Industry Services to track animal movements and support surveillance.

Steenhuisen stresses that vaccination is not a silver bullet and must be accompanied by good on-farm biosecurity and movement controls.

Becoming FMD-free will ultimately require coordinated and targeted efforts by the State, farmers, veterinarians and other organisations to report clinical signs of FMD and adhere to biosecurity measures.

DoA biosecurity coordination chief director Dr Emily Mogajane says the FMD plan targets the epicentre of FMD outbreaks in Phase 1, including KwaZulu-Natal, Gauteng and North West, with Phase 2 aimed at establishing buffer zones around areas such as the Northern, Western and Eastern Cape provinces to prevent infection.

“The goal is to interrupt virus transmission and reduce disease incidences to low levels in two to three years.”She affirms that laboratory diagnostic capacity is being reinforced by coordination of provincial veterinary laboratories to speed up reference testing, while the ARC and vaccine manufacturers are being supported to conduct vaccine-matching and target product profile assessments to ensure imported vaccines match circulating serotypes.

The DoA is working to build a robust database and surveillance system for FMD; however, Mogajane emphasises the importance of farmers, auctioneers, speculators and other partners adhering to movement controls and other disease spread measures.

The DoA proposes in its mass vaccination plan for FMD that 19.5-million cattle need to be vaccinated across 234 municipalities, of which 8.2-million are classified as a primary priority, 10-million are classified as a secondary priority and 1.2-million are classified as a tertiary priority.

Ultimately, Phase 1 (years one and two) of the FMD strategy will comprise intensive vaccination, strengthened surveillance, enhanced movement control and reinforced laboratory capacity; Phase 2 (years two to four) will comprise the establishment of buffer zones and compartments, improved communal trade systems and applications for freedom of vaccination for selected zones; and Phase 3 will involve evidence-based cessation of vaccination and fact-based proof of freedom.

The final Phase 4 (years seven to ten) will relate to national freedom and the World Organisation for Animal Health recognising South Africa's FMD-free status.

South Africa currently has access to the Botswana Vaccine Institute vaccine, with an application for Tükiye's Dollvet having been submitted. Government is still due to apply for Argentina's Biogenesis Bago vaccine.

Some of the DoA's planned amendments to legislation include that of the Animal Diseases Act to create explicit animal health emergency powers and authorise emergency vaccination modalities, as well as the Animal Identification Act to enable phased mandatory electronic identification in priority sectors.