Foot and mouth vaccine. (Photo: Department of Agriculture)
The Agricultural Research Council (ARC) confirmed on Thursday that 20,000 doses of a locally produced foot-and-mouth vaccine had been made available “in support of national vaccination campaigns”.
John Steenhuisen, the Minister of Agriculture, welcomed this step and indicated that the restoration of production capacity at the ARC is currently underway. According to Steenhuisen, an additional investment has already been made to expand the existing capacity over the medium term.
“Over time, in accordance with the national disease management strategy, this will progressively reduce the dependence on imports and ensure the sustainability of vaccine supply,” says Steenhuisen.
“The availability of vaccines is a crucial part of this strategy and we will do everything possible to make sure that there is enough vaccine to reach our target of 80% vaccination by the end of the year.”
The target to produce 20,000 doses by the end of March was previously set by the ARC during the making available of a first group of 12,900 doses on 6 February this year. This forms part of a strategy to increase domestic manufacturing capacity in order to meet national demand.
According to the ARC, it is planned to continue the weekly production of batches of approximately 20,000 doses of the SAT 1, 2 or 3 strains to support animal health and veterinary services.
The council did point out that, although the current program is aimed at the weekly delivery of 20,000 doses of the monovalent SAT 2 vaccine, production will be continuously adjusted in accordance with the virus strains that are in circulation at that time. Consequently, the vaccine composition and the production timelines will be adjusted accordingly.
“By expanding our manufacturing capacity, the ARC provides farmers and veterinary services with timely access to the vaccines needed to protect animal health and food security right across the country,” said Dr. Litha Magingxa, president and CEO of the ARC, said.
According to available data, more than 1.7 million farm animals have been vaccinated up to and including 26 March.
This figure follows the initial release of 12,900 ARC vaccine doses on February 6, as well as the import of one million Biogénesis Bagó vaccine doses from Argentina and 1.5 million doses from Dollvet in Turkey.
It is planned to make a further 3.5 million vaccine doses available during April to strengthen the vaccination efforts. This stock will consist of 1.5 million doses of Biogénesis Bagó and two million doses of Dollvet.