FMD puts livelihoods at risk

By: Envaalde Matheus

Economist Omu Kakujaha-Matundu says the Foot and Mouth Disease outbreak is not only a threat to Namibia’s livestock trade, but also to the people and families who depend on the sector for their livelihoods.

Matundu’s remarks came after Namibia confirmed FMD on Wednesday at a commercial farm in //Kharas Region, with 10 of 11 cattle testing positive and the government immediately imposing nationwide livestock movement and trade restrictions.
The ministry has since suspended the marketing and trade of cloven hoofed animals nationwide, as well as their import, export and transit.

Namibia has lost its FMD free status in the affected zone, putting key beef export markets at risk, with the timing of reinstatement dependent on containing the outbreak and meeting WOAH requirements.

In 2025, Namibia exported more than 13.3 million kilograms of beef, generating over N$2.1 billion in foreign exchange, with Europe, China, the US, Norway and the UK among its established markets.

Omo says the economic impact goes beyond lost markets, with prolonged restrictions threatening the livelihoods and everyday needs of families dependent on livestock income.

“How long we are now going to be a country without FMD, without vaccination. That is what gives us that entry into the EU and Norway market. Very lucrative markets are those two,” he said.

Kakujaha-Matundu said the discovery of FMD, a notifiable animal disease, means external markets effectively come to a halt.
“The internal market, similarly, you won’t take your animals to a market or to a wedding or to, I mean, those guys who are not used to that idea, who are living below the red line,” he said.

Agriculture ministry spokesperson Romeo Muyunda says slaughtering has also been halted at local and export abattoirs, informal markets and social events, while intensive surveillance and roadblocks have been introduced to contain the outbreak.

“The movement of cloven hoofed animals and their products is actually restricted countrywide. There is also a restriction in the movement or the importation and exportation of cloven hoofed animals into the country or outside the country,” he said.

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