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On Friday, 10 April, the minister of agriculture, John Steenhuisen, published the much-awaited draft vaccination scheme for foot-and-mouth disease (FMD) in cloven-hoofed animals. The scheme, formally titled the Routine Vaccination Scheme for Foot and Mouth Disease (RVS-FMD), will be issued under the Animal Diseases Act, 1984 (Act 35 of 1984).
It is intended to replace current FMD control measures with a systematic vaccination approach and follows hot on the heels of increased pressure by various industry role-players for the promulgation of the scheme. Public comments are invited and must be submitted within seven days of the publication date of 10 April, meaning the last day for comments is 17 April.
The following is a basic summary of the draft legislation. Click here to download the complete document.
Intent and background
The primary intent of the scheme is to establish a comprehensive, routine vaccination campaign against FMD. It is a highly contagious viral disease that affects cloven-hoofed animals, including cattle, pigs, sheep, and goats. FMD outbreaks have caused significant economic losses in South Africa and have been flagged for urgent government attention for a number of years. The disease causes reduced productivity, mortalities among young animals, and trade restrictions.
The proposed scheme aims to facilitate vaccination by state veterinarians, authorised private veterinarians, and qualified animal health technicians while maintaining strict oversight and traceability.
Key objectives
The draft scheme establishes several core objectives:
- Facilitating systematic vaccination against FMD by qualified professionals.
- Recommending effective vaccines against circulating strains and emerging variants.
- Establishing standard operating procedures for vaccine implementation, including compilation of vaccination schedules, traceability systems, record-keeping, monitoring, surveillance, and identification protocols.
- Ensuring clear role delineation and reporting requirements to prevent duplication and regulatory confusion.
- Mitigating FMD risks while allowing continued business operations for participants.
- Informing owners and the public about scheme measures.
- Establishing a governing committee to oversee implementation.
The scheme applies specifically to participating owners of cloven-hoofed animals and their livestock. Participation is voluntary, and enrolment requires animals to be traceable through an approved traceability system. The scheme will remain in force until amended or revoked by the minister.
Governance structure
A central committee for the routine vaccination scheme will be established, consisting of:
- A veterinary representative from the National Directorate of Animal Health.
- Two state veterinarians experienced in FMD control and epidemiology.
- Two private sector veterinarians with FMD and livestock industry experience.
- An OVR-TAD laboratory manager.
- Agricultural association representatives for cattle/stud, dairy, feedlot, small stock, and pigs.
- Two FMD academia experts, including a virologist and vaccinologist.
The committee will operate with a 50% plus one quorum, elect a chairperson and deputy, and make decisions by consensus or majority vote. Members not in full-time state employment will receive remuneration as determined by the minister.
The committee has extensive powers including:
- Overseeing scheme coordination and enrolment processes.
- Managing certificate issuance through the traceability system.
- Establishing minimum interoperability and data standards requirements.
- Determining tests and examinations, considering both positive and negative results.
- Requesting National Director assistance in sharing participant results.
- Providing compliance oversight and issuing notices to traceability systems and authorised veterinarians.
- Overseeing enrolment cancellation and conducting inspections.
- Reporting to the National Director and Provincial Directors on participant locations and scheme activities.
- Providing oversight on vaccine demand, distribution, traceability data framework, and surveillance feedback.
- Receiving information from the Minister, Department, and National Director for scheme development.
Participation requirements
Animal owners may enrol provided that:
- All owned animals are traceable according to defined standards.
- Animals comply with “traceable animal” requirements.
- Animals are recorded on the traceability system.
- The farm/property has defined boundary fencing and registered location coordinates.
- Owners comply with scheme requirements, including committee-issued inspection checklists.
- An authorised veterinarian or animal health technician is appointed for remuneration by the owner.
- Owners commit to audits and inspections under the scheme.
Vaccination and compliance standards
The scheme establishes strict standards for vaccination implementation, including requirements for:
- Vaccination protocols following manufacturer instructions.
- Traceability and movement control measures.
- Biosecurity plan implementation for participating sites.
- Record-keeping of participation certificates, tagging systems, vaccine records, temperature maintenance logs, medicines compliance, morbidity/mortality data, sales records, and audit reports.
- Electronic record submission to relevant traceability systems when possible.
Monitoring and surveillance
According to the draft scheme, participants must maintain continuous on-farm clinical surveillance and report suspicious FMD signs to the director of animal health. All incidents must be reported to the director and included in the traceability system. The scheme also requires post-vaccination surveillance to investigate vaccine efficacy factors, outbreak closures, mortality investigations in vaccinated herds, immediate reporting of suspect cases, laboratory result provision, tailored biosecurity planning, and comprehensive record-keeping of all vaccinations administered.
The scheme includes provisions for non-compliance management, with 14-day notice periods for corrective measures. Failure to address non-compliance conditions within stipulated timelines results in enrolment withdrawal. The Committee maintains authority to issue compliance notices and manage objections according to legislative provisions.
The draft scheme represents a significant shift toward proactive FMD management through systematic vaccination, emphasising traceability, professional oversight, and coordinated response while maintaining voluntary participation principles. – Government Gazette
