Note to Editors: Please note Sakhile Mngadi, MPL sound bites in isiZulu and English
The DA in KwaZulu-Natal (KZN) has formally written to MEC for Agriculture and Rural Development, Thembeni kaMadlopha-Mthethwa, and Premier Thami Ntuli, calling for the urgent declaration of Foot-and-Mouth Disease (FMD) as a provincial disaster.
FMD is no longer a looming threat in KZN – it is an active and escalating emergency that is already causing serious harm to farmers, rural livelihoods and food security across the province. The scale of the outbreak now requires decisive provincial intervention and the immediate activation of disaster management mechanisms.
Recent developments in Howick illustrate the pressure farmers are under. As FMD cases surged in the Midlands, farmers erected makeshift disinfection points on the Karkloof Road in an effort to protect their herds. These measures were halted due to a lack of formal authorisation, highlighting a growing gap between the severity of the outbreak and the province’s current response capacity.
FMD is a state-controlled disease. When farmers are left to act independently to safeguard their livelihoods, it is a clear indication that extraordinary measures are required. Infections are now being reported across several districts, threatening commercial, small-scale and communal farmers alike, with serious consequences for jobs, food supply chains and the agricultural economy.
The DA will continue to push for the accelerated rollout of vaccines and a coordinated, province-wide biosecurity response in KZN. We further welcome national efforts by Agriculture Minister John Steenhuisen to have FMD declared a national disaster, while maintaining that a provincial state of disaster is urgently needed to enable immediate, on-the-ground intervention in KZN.
The Premier and MEC must act without delay to unlock emergency funding, fast-track operational responses and restore confidence in the province’s ability to contain this outbreak.
KZN cannot afford further delays.