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Elton Manguwo

GOVERNMENT is accelerating the Theirelia BOLVAC vaccination programme as part of the National Integrated Ticks and tick-borne disease control strategy.

Speaking at the launch of the Theileria BOLVAC vaccine, pilot vaccination programme at Svikiro Dip tank in Manicaland, the Deputy Minister of Lands, Agriculture, Fisheries, Water and Rural Development Vangelis Haritatos said the local manufacture of Theileria Bolvac vaccine, supports the National Development Strategy 1 (NDS1) through the implementation of the Livestock Development Strategy (LDS).

“We are gathered here to today to celebrate yet another milestone in the implementation of the livestock growth plan as we launch this programme since vaccines are a critical component of good cattle management”, said Haritatos.

More than 65 percent of cattle death in Zimbabwe are a result of tick-borne diseases including Theileriosis (January disease) with some 500 000 cattle valued at more than US$150 million having died due to January disease between 2018 and 2022.

The deputy minister highlighted how the programme is a strategic move to address the need to vaccinate animals to combat tick-borne related diseases.

“While dipping remains the most cost-effective method of controlling ticks and tick-borne disease, there are many other ways of supplementing the dipping programme such as the use of tick grease,” said Haritatos.

In addition, under the Presidential tick-grease scheme, Government managed to distribute more than one million kilogrammes of grease to farmers complementing the dipping system.

Haritatos added: “A healthy cattle will contribute towards attaining an upper middle income economy.”

The effective use of this Theileria vaccine together with other measures will result in the reduction of cattle mortalities and promote higher production, productivity and profitability as envisaged in the Livestock Recovery and Growth Plan (LRGP).

The deputy minister highlighted that to date 20 460 doses of Theileria BOLVAC vaccine had been produced and another 96 000 doses are expected mid-December 2022 showing the country is now capacitated to locally produce three out of the four major tick-borne related diseases vaccines in the country.

“It is very exciting to note that the Theileria BOLVAC vaccine strain which was used to produce this vaccine was isolated here in Zimbabwe at Boleni farm in Goromonzi which is critical as we are not introducing foreign strains that might contaminate our environment,” he said.

The Government is implementing the LRGP aimed at increasing the country’s herd count to 6 million by 2023 from the current 5, 5 million in a bid to meet national demand and substitute imports.