Staff Writer
Progress is being made towards a possible solution to restrictions preventing livestock trucks returning from South Africa from carrying backloads to Namibia amid the ongoing regional risk of foot-and-mouth disease (FMD), the Namibia Agriculture Union has said.
The restriction has created a significant logistical and financial burden for livestock transporters, with the additional costs ultimately affecting producers and the wider livestock value chain.
The Livestock Producers’ Organisation (LPO) has been engaging the Directorate of Veterinary Services (DVS) to develop a system that would allow livestock trucks to return to Namibia with goods after undergoing approved cleaning and disinfection procedures in South Africa.
Under the proposed system, trucks would be cleaned and disinfected at approved facilities using appropriate disinfectants and procedures aligned with World Organisation for Animal Health (WOAH) standards.
The process would be supported by certification and documentation to provide DVS with veterinary assurance that the required protocols had been followed.
The Livestock and Livestock Products Board of Namibia (LLPBN) has contracted South African compliance company AfriCompliance to evaluate suitable disinfection facilities in South Africa.
The LLPBN, AfriCompliance and industry representatives consulted transporters, exporters and other stakeholders to identify key disinfection points used by livestock trucks operating between South Africa and Namibia.
A number of priority facilities were subsequently identified for evaluation.
According to the LPO, AfriCompliance is nearing completion of the evaluation process. The identified facilities will then undergo a formal accreditation process, which is expected to take a further two to three weeks, depending on the individual facilities and any outstanding requirements.
The accreditation process is being supported by relevant South African veterinary structures, with the aim of ensuring that the disinfection system provides sufficient assurance to Namibia’s DVS.
Consultations between industry representatives and DVS have also taken place, with the LPO saying the veterinary authority has responded positively to the proposed approach and recognised the financial pressure the restrictions are placing on the livestock industry.
The process has two main objectives: to establish a trusted and verifiable truck disinfection system supported by documentation acceptable to DVS, and to determine whether the system can provide sufficient biosecurity assurance for the authority to reconsider restrictions on livestock backloads.
The LPO said the initiative is not intended to weaken Namibia’s FMD controls, but rather to establish a scientifically sound, risk-based system that protects the country’s animal health status while reducing the logistical and financial burden on the livestock transport industry.
The organisation said it would continue working with DVS, LLPBN, AfriCompliance, South African veterinary authorities and other industry stakeholders to complete the accreditation process and potentially facilitate the reinstatement of livestock backloads under an appropriately controlled system.
