Office extract for citation on panduleniitula.com (draft). Ligature and line-break cleanup only. Media-inquiry footers from the PDF are not reprinted. The supplied heading prints “FOOD AND MOUTH DISEASE”; the body uses FMD. This extract is the office wording, not a finding of this site.

Filename as supplied: PRESS STATEMENT_PFBI_FMD (1).pdf
6 OCTOBER 2026
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

PRESS STATEMENT ON THE FOOD AND MOUTH DISEASE OUTBREAK

1. Following the President’s address on 5 October 2026, Namibians need a
clear account of the work required to restore export access and protect
livelihoods. I welcome the national attention given to this crisis and thank
the veterinary teams working in //Kharas. Government should now publish
a costed recovery plan, with named responsibilities and deadlines for the
actions within its control.

2. The European Union’s statement of 5 October 2026 commends Namibia’s
prompt notification and initial control measures. That must be
acknowledged. Our demand is for Government to show what happens
next: what each trading partner requires, what Namibia has submitted, and
which decisions remain outstanding.

3. The restrictions are specific and serious. Great Britain suspended imports of
fresh bovine, ovine and caprine meat from Namibia from 25 September
2026, with restrictions on casings and untreated wool and hair from
susceptible species applying from 30 September 2026.

4. The United States imposed restrictions on certain animal commodities
originating from or transiting the whole of Namibia, effective 23 September
2026.

5. The EU says its measure was published on 5 October 2026, with 23
September 2026 as the closing date for relevant commodities from
Namibia’s previously FMD-free zone. This is not a ban on every product:
meat receiving the prescribed risk-mitigating treatment remains eligible.
Exporters need clear, product-specific guidance on what may still move.

6. The EU also identifies a 90-day window for qualifying consignments certified
before 23 September, subject to applicable requirements and Member
State border-control decisions. Government should urgently obtain and
publish written confirmation of the final admissible entry date and the
conditions for each affected consignment. Meat in cold storage must not
be assumed eligible merely because it was produced before the outbreak.

7. Preparation also deserves scrutiny. In a NAMPA report published on 7
November 2025, Agriculture’s deputy executive director warned that the
FMD-free zone was not adequately prepared for an outbreak.
Government should account for the corrective actions taken after that
warning, the resources provided and the gaps that remained.

8. Germany’s experience shows why the technical recovery pathway
matters. World Organization for Animal Health (WOAH) records that
Germany recovered FMD-free status outside a recognised containment
zone in 62 days in 2025.

9. That is not a promised timetable for Namibia, and a domestic buffer zone
is not automatically an internationally recognised containment zone. The
Ministry of Agriculture should explain the proposed pathway, its evidence
requirements and the milestones for submitting a complete application.

10. The response must be funded transparently. Reporting attributes an
estimated N$190.2 million containment requirement to Government,
including approximately N$47 million for 290 kilometres of disease-control
fencing. An estimate is not an approved budget or money released.

11. Government should publish the costed plan, approved funding, amounts
disbursed, remaining shortfall and fencing milestones. Any emergency
contracts should be disclosed with suppliers, prices and delivery
obligations.

12. Farmers, abattoir workers, transporters and other businesses need practical
information for decisions about income, employment and debt.
Government and participating lenders should publish relief eligibility,
application channels and decision times, making clear which measures
are approved and which remain proposals.

13. By 9 October 2026, the Ministers responsible for Agriculture and
International Relations and Trade should publish a joint recovery statement
and make it available to Parliament. It should list each partner’s restrictions
and exceptions, Namibia’s submissions and outstanding requirements,
responsible officials and the next deadline within Namibia’s control.

14. It should also set out funding and relief arrangements. Reopening dates
depend on veterinary evidence and importing authorities; submission
dates, spending disclosures and regular progress reports are responsibilities
Government can own.

15. “Government cannot guarantee when another country will reopen its
market. It can tell farmers what work must be completed, who must
complete it and by when.”

Namibia is all we have
Namibia is not for sale
We must and can save it!

ISSUED BY: Panduleni Itula (Dr.)
President and Leader of the Official Opposition in the Republic of Namibia