South Africa has spent more than R72 million on around 900 000 doses of vaccines to contain the Foot and Mouth Disease FMD outbreak since March this year.
The government is now prioritising local vaccine production to manage future outbreaks better and reduce reliance on costly imports.
According to the SABC , Agriculture Minister John Steenhuisen confirmed this week that the Department of Agriculture, in collaboration with the Agricultural Research Council ARC, Onderstepoort Biological Products OBP and the University of Pretoria, is working on finalising a local vaccine.
South Africa has made great progress in vaccine development. We have a vaccine that's now being registered, and we are finalising some of the remaining trials, said Dr Litha Magingxa, President and CEO of ARC.
The Department of Agriculture held a two-day FMD Indaba to engage stakeholders and drive collaboration across government and the private sector.