5 October 2026
- Botswana will vaccinate cattle within 40km of the South African border in Zones 9 and 10 under a revised foot-and-mouth disease control strategy.
- FMD outbreaks have suspended disease-free status in several cattle zones and closed Botswana’s remaining authorised channels for fresh-beef exports to the European Union.
- The government is combining vaccination, movement controls, surveillance and rezoning as it seeks to restore market access while containing further outbreaks.
Botswana is expanding mandatory foot-and-mouth disease (FMD) vaccination to cattle within a 40-km belt along its border with South Africa as the country seeks to contain outbreaks that have disrupted livestock movements and restricted access to international beef markets.
Director of Veterinary Services Dr. Kobedi Segale announced the measure on October 4 at a farmers’ meeting in Lerala, saying cattle in Zones 9 and 10 within 40 km of the South African border would be vaccinated under the government’s revised FMD control strategy.
The programme comes as veterinary authorities manage an outbreak in Kgatleng and monitor other areas for new infections. The Ministry of Lands and Agriculture said on September 29 that surveillance had found no FMD west of the A1 or in Zones 9, 10 and 13 along the South African border.
The government is also working on a rezoning framework that could allow areas remaining free of infection to regain FMD-free status without vaccination, while vaccination is used in higher-risk border areas. The animal-health measures have direct implications for Botswana’s beef trade. The World Organisation for Animal Health (WOAH) recognises Botswana as having an endorsed official FMD control programme, but several of the country’s FMD-free zones where vaccination is not practiced have had that status suspended following outbreaks this year. The status of Zones 3c (Dukwi), 4b, 5, 6a, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12 and 13 was suspended from March 31 after an outbreak in Barolong. Zone 6b was suspended from January 25, while Zone 3c (Maitengwe) was suspended from February 3.
The European Union subsequently removed Botswana’s remaining eligible zones from its list of areas authorised to supply fresh beef. An April 2026 EU regulation cited the Barolong outbreak and the suspension of the relevant disease-free status.
It also noted that cattle destined for an EU-approved slaughterhouse cannot pass through zones that are not authorised for entry into the EU.
The measure closed Botswana’s remaining authorised channels for fresh-beef exports to the EU. The restriction is significant because Botswana’s beef industry has historically relied on higher-priced European and Norway markets. In January, Botswana Meat Commission acting chief executive Mmabasotho Tibe warned that alternative markets generally did not offer the same prices as the EU and Norway, although the commission was working to expand sales in the Gulf, Africa and Asia.
The disruption has also reached domestic processing. Botswana Meat Commission reported a P54.3 million unaudited profit for 2025 after slaughtering 62,204 cattle at its Lobatse plant, but said FMD protocols had slowed operations in 2026.
The facility has the capacity to slaughter 600 cattle a day but was operating below capacity while veterinary authorities completed vaccination and surveillance processes required before exports could resume. BMC generated P1.04 billion in revenue in 2025.
Feedlots have faced similar constraints. J.S. Beef and PrimeFast, two of Botswana’s largest private feedlot operations, had about 6,600 cattle stranded in September after movement restrictions prevented the animals from being taken to slaughter. The companies said they had spent more than P27.8 million feeding and maintaining the stranded cattle while the restrictions remained in place.
This makes border control particularly important for the domestic livestock chain. South Africa is one of the countries from which FMD presents a transmission risk, while Botswana’s disease-control system relies on cordon fences, controlled livestock movements, surveillance, vaccination and traceability to separate cattle populations.
At the Lerala meeting, Segale said Botswana produces more beef than the domestic market can consume, making export access necessary for the cattle industry. The government’s approach combines disease prevention with efforts to preserve the commercial value of livestock by allowing unaffected areas to be treated differently from infected or high-risk zones.
Authorities have also tightened movement controls. The September 29 protocol continues to restrict livestock movements in affected areas while allowing certain movements for slaughter, breeding and trade subject to veterinary permits, quarantine, vaccination and other controls.
The government has warned farmers against moving cattle illegally and damaging cordon-fence infrastructure, which veterinary authorities use to limit contact between livestock populations.
The current strategy is moving towards greater use of zonal disease management. Instead of applying identical restrictions across Botswana, authorities want surveillance to establish which areas remain free of infection and then use those findings to support the restoration of market access. That approach is consistent with the way international animal-health rules treat Botswana’s beef trade. The EU authorises fresh-meat imports from specifically defined veterinary zones rather than automatically treating the entire country as eligible. Before the latest suspension, the EU framework included authorised Botswana supply areas designated BW-1, BW-2, BW-3 and BW-5.
The economic stakes extend beyond exporters. Farmers face longer holding periods and restrictions on where cattle can be sold, while feedlots, transporters, slaughterhouses and other businesses depend on the movement of animals through the production chain. WOAH notes that FMD can generate losses through reduced productivity, costly control measures, movement restrictions and the loss of export markets, with effects extending across livestock value chains and rural livelihoods.
Botswana is also looking beyond the immediate outbreak. The government is negotiating sanitary requirements with importing countries and seeking alternative destinations while working to restore its animal-health status. BMC has identified markets in the Gulf Cooperation Council, Africa and Asia as part of its diversification efforts, while maintaining EU standards as a benchmark for future exports.
By Cynthia Ebot Takang
Source: https://shorturl.at/8p7bO
