Namibia free from bovine tuberculosis
bTB first reported in 1913
To comply with the WOAH requirements for self-declared freedom from disease, Namibia had to provide extensive information pertaining to disease detection, prevention and control.
Namibia declared itself free from bovine tuberculosis (bTB), a disease which is caused by bacteria and mostly affects cattle and wild animals such as kudus, lions and buffaloes. According to Dr Anja Boshoff-De Witt, executive of meat standards at the Livestock and Livestock Products Board (LLPB), in January this year, the World Organisation for Animal Health (WOAH) published Namibia’s self-declaration for a zone historically free from bTB.
She said that this declaration is for the zone south of the veterinary cordon fence, which is also recognised by WOAH as free from Foot-and-Mouth Disease (FMD) without vaccination since May 1997.
It is also free from bovine lung sickness since May 2016, free from small stock pest since May 2015 and the entire country is recognised as having a negligible risk for mad cow disease since May 2016.
Extensive information
Boshoff-De Witt said that to comply with the WOAH requirements for self-declared freedom from disease, Namibia had to provide extensive information pertaining to disease detection, prevention and control. This information included evidence that bTB is a notifiable disease in the country.
“This claim is supported by animal health law implemented in Namibia since 1956, listing bTB as a notifiable disease, and declaring the whole of Namibia a disease control area for bTB.” She said the reporting of notifiable diseases in Namibia is compulsory.
“Based on available records, bTB has been a controlled disease in Namibia since 1911.”
According to her, the occurrence of bTB in Namibia was first reported in 1913.
Boshoff-De Witt said all of the 167 confirmed bTB cases from 1913 to 1986 were in dairy cattle and were all traced to imported cattle. The last confirmed case in the zone declared as free from bTB was in 1986.
She added that bTB has not yet been reported in any of the wildlife spill-over and maintenance hosts in Namibia.
“Several pre-export tests that have been conducted on African buffalo protocol, as updated in 2017, describes the surveillance strategy, setting procedures for routine abattoir surveillance, testing of imported animals, pre-export testing of cattle destined for South Africa and investigating reported cases.”
According to her, Namibia is consistently up to date with the submission of six-monthly and annual reports to the WOAH and has a history of prompt reporting of any WOAH-listed disease.
Furthermore, active and passive surveillance for bTB has been implemented in Namibia since 1910, when abattoir inspection was first introduced and awareness programmes for bTB have also implemented.
Important channel
Boshoff-De Witt said cattle weaner exports to feedlots in South Africa for eventual slaughter is an important marketing channel for the Namibian livestock industry, with subsistence farmers producing approximately 70% of these exports. “New import requirements set by South Africa require pre-export isolation and testing for bTB.”
Since implementation on 1 July 2016 to January this year, more than 1.52 million head of cattle were tested, all with negative results, she noted.
Strict import control measures are implemented to ensure Namibia remains free from bTB and that the importation of animals is done under the close supervision of the Directorate of Veterinary Services and in compliance with the Animal Health Act.
“All imported livestock are branded and individually identified according to the animal identification regulations.”
Boshoff-De Witt noted that a dossier, developed by the LLPB and the Directorate of Veterinary Services, was submitted by the chief veterinary officer (CVO) to the relevant WOAH office in August 2023.
After performing administrative and technical screening, the self-declaration was published by WOAH in January 2024.
“This publication by the WOAH is further testament to Namibia’s commitment towards exceptional animal health standards for the progression and success of the Namibian livestock and livestock products industries, with a focus on export of world-class produce, of which the markets have been established over decades.”