Image: Department of Agriculture
Agriculture minister admits “lack of readiness” and calls state response “stretched to limits”
South Africa’s agriculture minister John Steenhuisen has called for a more science-driven, coordinated approach to animal health to combat an ongoing outbreak of foot-and-mouth disease in the country.
Addressing a gathering of experts, farmers and agricultural industry representatives outside Pretoria on 21 July, Steenhuisen (pictured) described the state’s response as “stretched to its limits” and said the response was hampered by communication breakdowns, delays in vaccine availability, confusion over movement restrictions and a “lack of readiness at several levels of government”.
