24 Jul 2024

Coordinator of Foot and Mouth Disease in the Southern District Dr Jaone Sebina says after installing the disease control fence along Molopo River, the Ministry of Agriculture  has started drilling and equipping boreholes in affected villages where residents will be able to water their livestock.

Speaking in an interview, Dr Sebina said after the scare of the Foot and Mouth Disease reported from neighbouring South Africa last year, government took decision to construct the cordon fence to control livestock movement as residents were getting water from the Molopo River. 

However, some residents especially farmers had reservations about the cordon fence, saying watering their animals would become difficult as they had all along been using the water bodies in the river.

Dr Sebina said government decided to construct boreholes in each of the affected villages where farmers would have a sustainable source of water and be able to water their livestock and not temper with the cordon fence. 

“We have so far drilled nine boreholes and rehabilitated three others, all solar equipped together with reservoirs at the tune of around P9 million,” he said.

He said that even though Tlhareselelle and Rakhuna villages were not affected by the construction of the cordon fence, they would each get a borehole as an appreciation for their efforts of working with government in ensuring that livestock did not cross through their villages to South Africa.

For his part the farmers’ committee chairperson Mr Jackson Sechele said they appreciated the developments because the cordon fence would help stop livestock movement to South Africa. 

“The cordon fence and the boreholes will also help a lot because in the past our livestock strayed to South Africa after drinking from the river, thereby exposing them to theft”.

Loporung community borehole chairperson Mr Edison Sesike said they were very happy for being gifted a borehole after government constructed a cordon fence along the river where they used to water their animals. 

He concurred that amongst benefits they will get from the borehole, farmers would be able to control the movement of their livestock while at the same time getting affordable water for their livestock.

Mr Sesike said they intended to take care of their borehole by hiring people who will amongst other things guard the solar panels. 

Dr Sebina said the ministry intended to handover the boreholes to the concerned communities before the end of September. ENDS