FMD confirmed on 18 ||Kharas farms

Chief veterinary officer Dr Kenneth Shoombe confirmed on Saturday that 131 animals on 18 farms in the ||Kharas region had tested positive for foot-and-mouth disease (FMD) by Thursday.Agriculture spokesperson Romeo Muyunda told a media briefing in Gobabis last week that veterinary teams had inspected 63 011 animals since authorities confirmed the outbreak on 23 September.The outbreak remains confined to the Karasburg State Veterinary District, and all positive animals carry the SAT 1 strain of the virus. The figures are up from 17 infected farms and 129 positive samples reported on 6 October.Authorities have also stepped up checks to prevent the unauthorised movement of livestock, meat and meat products. Muyunda said 10 632 vehicles had been searched as part of FMD control operations.The searches form part of wider movement-control measures involving veterinary checkpoints across ||Kharas, Khomas and Otjozondjupa. By 6 October, officials had searched 2 292 vehicles at seven checkpoints, while meat and meat products found in violation of restrictions were confiscated and destroyed.Veterinary teams are continuing surveillance and tracing livestock movements around the first infected farm.The ministry has expanded the surveillance radius from 30 km to 50 km, with 65 farms targeted in a second round of inspections. By 14 October, 11 of those farms had been inspected.Compulsory vaccination in the Karasburg district began on Wednesday and is scheduled to be conducted in three rounds over three months.The campaign covers farms south of the B3 and C10 roads towards the Orange River, as well as a strip covering two farms north of those roads. Livestock owners are required to present their animals for vaccination by government veterinary officials.phillipus@nmh-hub.com.na

FMD confirmed on 18 ||Kharas farms

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Namibian Sun 2026-10-19

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FMD confirmed on 18 ||Kharas farms

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Namibian Sun 2026-10-19

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