Farmers from Niani in northern Vhembe say they fear their livestock could be affected by diseases carried by wild animals entering from Zimbabwe and the Kruger National Park.
The village lies close to the Kruger National Park (KNP) and the Zimbabwean border, where wild animals such as elephants break through damaged fences. Villagers are frequently confronted by the animals, which wander into the streets and pose a danger to the community.
Livestock farmers say the broken fence leaves their animals vulnerable to Foot-and-Mouth disease (FMD), as there is no barrier preventing contact with infected wildlife. They are calling on the government to repair the fence to reduce the negative impact the FMD outbreak is already having on the country’s economy.
One of the farmers, Mashudu Manenzhe, attributed the problem to the absence of a functional border fence on the eastern side.
“These wild animals move in from Zimbabwe to our area. Our village is situated close to the river and therefore, many wild animals can get into contact with our livestock and that scares us as our livelihoods depend on us rearing livestock,” he said.
Manenzhe said there used to be a fence separating movement between the two countries, known as the “red line”. That fence has since collapsed. He urged the government to restore the “red line” fence.
Apart from the risk of disease, Manenzhe said the presence of wild animals also poses a threat to residents. “We had to run for our lives after we saw the wild animals here in our streets,” he said, appealing to the Department of Agriculture to urgently send rangers to locate the animals that are giving residents sleepless nights.
Another farmer, Shadrack Phuravhathu, said they were aware of the risk of Foot-and-Mouth disease spreading to their livestock. He also appealed to the government to assist with vaccinating their animals.