Question NW2347 to the Minister of Agriculture, Land Reform and Rural Development
26 June 2023 - NW2347
Masipa, Mr NP to ask the Minister of Agriculture, Land Reform and Rural Development
(1)Whether she will furnish Mr N P Masipa with a report of the outbreak of all notifiable and controlled animal diseases that were reported in each province in the past 10 years; if not, why not; if so, what are the relevant details; (2) what actions did her department take to manage and/or prevent further outbreak of the specified diseases?
Reply:
1. Yes. According to the National Disease Database, 13 406 disease outbreaks of controlled and notifiable diseases were reported and followed up by Provincial Veterinary Services in the ten-year period from January 2013 to December of 2022. A list of diseases and the number of outbreaks per province is attached as Annexure A.
2. The disease control measures relevant to the different controlled diseases are detailed in Table 2 of the Regulations to the Animal Diseases Act, No 35 of 1984, attached as Annexure B. These are the requirements for the control of the diseases as required by law. Since the epidemiology of each disease is different, the control measures are different for different diseases. Furthermore, different outbreaks of the same disease may be handled slightly differently, depending on the situation on the ground, the numbers of animals involved, the farming practices and the areas affected. It is not feasible to provide detailed information for each of the 13 406 outbreaks noted above.
Notifiable diseases such as Rift Valley Fever, Bluetongue and Lumpy Skin Disease, are not controlled by government and there are no prescribed control measures. However. outbreaks must be notified to the state veterinarian and awareness is done on ways to prevent further outbreaks.