By: Nkosiyabusa Nsibande
Eswatini’s strategy for containing Foot-and-Mouth Disease is entering a new phase focused less on emergency response and more on preparedness. Following months of intensive vaccination, the government is now strengthening its vaccine reserves through international cooperation and forward procurement, an approach designed to reduce future disease risks while supporting the country’s efforts to restore livestock exports.
Addressing journalists during a press briefing, Minister of Agriculture Mandla Tshawuka confirmed that South Africa has donated 50,000 vaccine doses to assist Eswatini’s disease control program. In addition, the Ministry currently holds 69,000 vaccine doses in laboratory storage and expects a further 150,000 doses to arrive on 30 July as part of its preparedness strategy. “South Africa has donated 50,000 vaccine doses to assist Eswatini, while 69,000 doses are currently available in our laboratories. On 30 July we expect another 150,000 doses, which have already been ordered as part of our preparedness program,” Tshawuka said
The combined vaccine reserves provide Government with greater flexibility to respond quickly should isolated outbreaks emerge in the future. For agricultural economists, maintaining strategic vaccine stocks has become increasingly important because delayed responses often translate into higher economic losses through animal movement restrictions, disrupted supply chains, and lost export opportunities.
Preparedness has become particularly critical following confirmation that there are currently no active Foot-and-Mouth Disease cases in the country. Maintaining adequate vaccine inventories helps preserve those gains while reducing the financial cost associated with emergency procurement during future outbreaks.
The Minister also revealed that the World Organization for Animal Health (WOAH) has advised Eswatini to apply for continuation of international trade under a vaccination framework while simultaneously adopting regional zoning. Under this approach, disease-free areas could progressively resume livestock trade even if vaccination programs continue elsewhere. Tshawuka explained that “the World Organization for Animal Health has advised Eswatini to apply for continuation of trade with vaccination and to zone the country into regions so that unaffected areas can resume trade more quickly.”
For the livestock industry, zoning has potentially significant commercial implications. Rather than treating the entire country as one disease management unit, unaffected regions may regain market access sooner, reducing financial losses for farmers operating in disease-free zones. Such an approach limits the economic impact of future outbreaks by allowing commercial activity to continue in compliant production areas.
South Africa’s vaccine donation also reflects growing regional cooperation in protecting Southern Africa’s livestock economy. Disease outbreaks rarely respect national borders, making coordinated responses increasingly important for safeguarding regional trade and agricultural investment.
With strategic vaccine reserves expanding and international veterinary authorities supporting a more flexible trade framework, Eswatini’s FMD response is shifting from crisis management towards long-term resilience. For investors and livestock producers alike, that transition is essential for rebuilding confidence in one of the country’s most valuable agricultural sectors.
