South Africa’s Minister of Agriculture John Steenhuisen has appointed the Foot and Mouth Disease (FMD) Industry Coordination Council to support implementation of the national strategy to control the disease.
Steenhuisen said in a statement that the council has been established to ensure that industry plays an active, coordinated role in supporting the phased rollout of the FMD strategy, including vaccine distribution, traceability and disease control readiness.
“I am fully committed to doing whatever it takes to beat FMD. This council will engage directly with me, and its input will be taken seriously. Government cannot do this alone; we need the full strength of the private sector, farmers and veterinarians collaborating with us,” Steenhuisen said.
“We now have a roadmap, and I am accountable for its delivery. If we stay focused andwork together, I believe we can restore FMD-free status in less than ten years,” he said.
The council will form one part of a partnership, which includes the Department of Agriculture and the Technical and Scientific Task Team, essential to delivering on the FMD response strategy. The council will provide operational insight, strategic guidance and unified industry input.
To ensure a coordinated approach with industry, the minister issued a directive assigning the council the role of aligning industry efforts with national FMD control measures. This includes establishing an industry coordination mechanism to mobilise sector actions; consolidating industry situational information; coordinating industry communication; supporting implementation readiness for traceability and audit-ready record-keeping and facilitating non-statutory logistics, including training, awareness and implementation monitoring.
He said the council will engage regularly with both the department and the technical team to ensure alignment between policy, implementation and veterinary oversight.
The council will begin its work this week focusing on aligning priorities and consolidating industry input. Weekly engagements will follow to maintain momentum, support structured monitoring and ensure consistent progress. These meetings will strengthen the council’s ability to present recommendations to government and the technical team.
The council has already requested an urgent meeting with the technical team to review the national plan and ensure alignment of operational capacity across industry and government structures.
Council members include Johann Kotzé, Bennie van Zyl, Theo Boshoff, Frikkie Maré, Fanie Ferreira, Marlene Louw, Bongani Msimang, Kobus Bester and Dewald Olivier.
