Public policy analyst and lecturer at the University of Namibia Rundu Campus, Dr Gerson Sindano said the veterinary cordon fence known as the Redline will not be moved anytime soon thus the Kavango East Region Farmers Union should focus on other alternatives to market livestock.

Sindano made the statement on Tuesday during a two-day stakeholder engagement aimed to develop a five-year strategic plan for the Kavango East Region Farmers Union.

The engagement will also look into progress on a proposal made last year into the gradual removal of the Redline.

“In 1896 Namibia suffered a serious outbreak of rinderpest (cattle disease) where German settlers and Hereros suffered losses. To protect German herds from future epidemics the veterinary cordon fence was introduced,” he noted.

Sindano suggested that the solution would be to create foot and mouth disease-free zones with feedlots in each constituency to act like quarantine zones.

This however he said needs political will. The zones which then remain disease-free can then be given access to other markets such as the Southern African Development Community (SADC) free trade agreements.

Sindano said while a proposal to move the fence to the Angolan border has been considered in the past, the idea is impractical because of the continuous movement of family livestock across the Namibian-Angolan border.

He said the government should rather establish mobile quality assurance offices to ensure the quality of livestock in each constituency.

“The farmer unions in the north of the Redline should also be robust in order to advocate for the infrastructural development such as feeder roads, borehole and communication infrastructure,” he stressed.

Other topics discussed during the engagement are the role of regional government in agricultural development and support to farmers.

The meeting also discussed capital projects such as the Rundu abattoir, Uvhungu-Vhungu dairy farm and the future of the green schemes in the region.

Source: The Namibian Press Agency