WINDHOEK, Sept. 24 (Xinhua) -- Namibia on Wednesday night announced further measures to contain a foot-and-mouth disease (FMD) outbreak, halting the nationwide movement, trade and slaughter of all cloven-hoofed animals, while also suspending imports, exports and in-transit movements of the animals and their raw products.
The measures came after Namibia earlier on Wednesday confirmed FMD at a commercial farm in the Kharas Region, inside the country's World Organization for Animal Health-recognised FMD-free zone. The government had initially suspended nationwide movement of cloven-hoofed animals and their products, as well as imports and exports of the animals, until further notice.
In a veterinary public notification issued by the Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries, Water and Land Reform late Wednesday, the Directorate of Veterinary Services under the ministry said a total of 63 cattle showing clinical signs of FMD had been observed during routine disease surveillance in Karasburg on Sept. 22. Samples from 11 cattle were submitted for testing, with 10 testing positive for the FMD virus on Sept. 23.
The National FMD Contingency Plan was activated under the Animal Health Act of 2011 to control the outbreak, the Directorate said.
Under the expanded measures, nationwide marketing and trade of cloven-hoofed animals and their raw products have been suspended, while imports, exports and in-transit movements have also been halted. Slaughter of cloven-hoofed animals at export and local abattoirs, informal markets and social events has also been stopped.
"Intensive surveillance has commenced effective immediately to establish the full extent of the outbreak," the Directorate said, adding that roadblocks would be set up at strategic areas to enforce movement controls.
FMD is a highly contagious viral disease of cloven-hoofed animals such as cattle, sheep, goats, pigs and other wild animals.
The Directorate urged farmers and the public to report suspected cases to state veterinary offices without delay and called for cooperation to contain the outbreak.
