FMD epidemic farmer’s tragedy of the year
Lesedi Mkhutshwa | Monday December 26, 2022 06:00
The region has over the last two decades been experiencing the recurrence of the FMD due to a number of reasons amongst them elephants destroying the border fence paving way for cattle to move freely between Botswana and Zimbabwe, thus spreading the disease.
The last outbreak of FMD in Zone 6b which is part of the region, took place in April 2010. This year’s outbreak in which the first confirmed cases were recorded in Butale village in August 2022, did not come as a surprise for the pastoral farmers.
Following the outbreak, the Ministry of Agriculture (MoA) sealed off the Vukwi and Bisoli gates which cover the areas where the disease was detected to prevent it from spreading. One of the affected farmers and the owner of Dzapela 2 Farm in Tshesebe village, Aggrey Makhila, had shared the pain of restocking time and again due to the recurrence of FMD in the region.
Makhila was one of the farmers who lost 30 cattle worth about P130,000 in 2011 when the government took a decision to depopulate in order to control the FMD.
Over the past decades, farming has not been that rewarding for Makhila and other farmers since their livestock is being killed once again due to the FMD. Makhila, who has been a farmer for the last two decades, has suffered from financial and social problems which he attributes to the perpetual outbreak of the FMD in Zone 6b.
The worried farmer had earlier told Mmegi that the FMD has and continues to bring pain and misery to his life. “I have lost my father due to the stress after his cattle were killed following the outbreak of the FMD in 2011.
My father succumbed to a heart attack after his expensive bull worth P40,000 was culled but he was only given a measly P1,700 as compensation. Since then, my family is still haunted by the post-FMD trauma,” a worried Makhila said.
Makhila currently owns 55 cows, 30 weaners and 67 goats, which will be slaughtered following the government’s decision to depopulate livestock in the zone.
The aggrieved farmer was against the idea of restocking, indicating that if one is given 10 weaners after his cattle are exterminated, it takes time for them to mature and adapt to their new environment.
“Eleven of the 30 cows I was given in 2011 died because they failed to adapt to the new environment. I encountered a huge loss after spending a lot on supplementary feeds and vaccines. The most painful thing is that the government refused to adequately compensate me,” he added.
To add salt to his injury, Makhila revealed that he recently took a loan to drill a borehole, and in the process, he spent P89,000.
“I took the loan with the view that I am going to sell all my 43 weaners for P130, 000 in order to repay the loan,” added the troubled farmer.
Meanwhile, in his recent State of the Nation Address (SONA), President Mokgweetsi Masisi said the FMD outbreak incidences continue to threaten the livelihoods of farmers and cause immense emotional pain.
Furthermore, he said the disease also negatively impacts the economy of the country. “Recently the North East District experienced an outbreak of the disease in Zone 6b.
To relieve the burden of loss on affected communities, the government made a decision to depopulate, restock and compensate the affected farmers,” said Masisi.