BREAKING NEWS - Otjozondjupa farmers fear FMD as livestock roam townlands

Otjiwarongo farmer and businessman Mark Mücke has warned that uncontrolled livestock movements on the townlands could threaten the region’s livestock industry if foot-and-mouth disease (FMD) spreads to Otjozondjupa. The region has Namibia’s highest total livestock numbers, making disease prevention and livestock movement controls particularly important to farmers and the wider agricultural economy. Mücke said farmers are expected to comply with restrictions on selling and slaughtering animals, while uncontrolled livestock movements and alleged informal meat sales raise concerns about whether regulations are being enforced equally. “If we get an outbreak in Otjiwarongo, Otjozondjupa, wherever, Otavi, Grootfontein, they all have the same problems that we have with the municipality. We will not win against FMD,” he said. He warned that an outbreak could leave farmers unable to sell livestock, forcing them to retrench workers and worsening unemployment. FMD was confirmed in //Kharas on 23 September 2026, with 131 positive cases across 18 farms recorded by 21 October. In Zambezi, samples from Kalala Island tested positive on 7 October.

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