Red Line (Namibia)

Veterinary fences in southern Africa are fences that were used for separation of farm animals that are free of diseases and those that are not free from diseases, furnished. They are mainly in Namibia and Botswana, but also to find and Zimbabwe are colloquially referred to as the " red line." In general, the transport of meat and other animal products over these fences in the disease-free areas is prohibited.

Namibia

North-south fence

The fence was planned shortly after an outbreak of rinderpest in 1897, finally established the mid- 1960s and in still exists today. He should stop the movement of meat, livestock and animal products from north to south. 1961, when there was a sharp outbreak of foot- and -mouth disease in northern Namibia, the fence was re-amplified. By the end of apartheid and the independence of Namibia in 1990 and ever since the German colonial era, the fence, however, had another function: the living in northern Namibia strains could be kept away easily from the otherwise "white" Namibia. So the South Africans did this "red line" in enforcing their homeland policy in handy to 1977 and was not allowed to Ovambo cross this boundary without permission ( eg in the form of an employment contract ).

Although the veterinary fence is guarded to this day his gates, no guards, let alone a maintenance took place off this. In this respect, has remained especially in the western Namibia hardly anything left of the veterinary fence. There is also the northern Angola back as yet been no "real" limit, apart from the "natural boundaries," so are the Kunene and the Okavango, ab.Alle animals, which were kept north of the fence and spent in the South, need for 21 days in quarantine before they are approved for slaughter today. All Products southern of the fence are approved for export to the European Union and other regions. 2010 was the Namibian government to abolish the entire veterinary fence, but this was ultimately not carried out.

In this regard were previously different approaches, as discussed, among other things, a gradual shift of the fence north to the Angolan border intense. Any endeavor proved ultimately but as unworkable. A major reason for this is to this day, among other things, the fact that remains largely pass large numbers of cattle, the Namibian- Angolan border unchecked, whether as a result of pasture shortage in the densely populated northern Namibian or for marketing purposes. Because in the pacified only a few years Angola does not have comparable conditions Namibian veterinary infrastructure still exists, it must be assumed that the cross-border spread of animal diseases in this regard continue. Today ( 2008), north of the fence already held more than a million cattle, which may not be formally marketed without prior quarantine and therefore are mainly used on site in northern Namibia for meat.

More fences

In addition to its north-south fence further veterinary fences, especially as a border fence east into neighboring Botswana.

Botswana

In Botswana there are numerous veterinary fences, where the entire country is divided by veterinary fences in so-called control zones. So an encroachment of economically important animal diseases to the entire country should be made impossible from the outset. Nevertheless, but most veterinary fences tend to concentrate in the north of the country where the risk of an outbreak of foot-and -mouth disease is considered to be the greatest, since there is a large, naturally occurring buffalo population which a long-term carriers of the pathogen is without even being affected by it. Along the border with Namibia also exists a veterinary and border fence in north-south direction. Probably the longest veterinary fence Botswana is called the Buffalo Fence ( dt buffalo fence), which south of the Okavango Delta through the land from west to east.

The Makgadikgadi Boteti fence is one of the latest veterinary fences in Botswana. When the Boteti River, who had been prevented as a natural boundary contact of livestock and wildlife to dry out in the early 1990s began, it was decided to build a veterinary fence to maintain this recent border in the middle of the dry river bed. Using this approach for livestock water holes were created on the one hand and on the other hand maintain water sources for wildlife. It is generally very strictly controlled in Botswana and offenses are punished. The outbreak of foot-and -mouth disease is a common problem in Botswana. So it was there in 1934, 1945, 1961 and 1964 outbreaks of foot-and-mouth disease, overlapped each to Namibia and from which the epidemic of 1961 wreaked by far the largest economic loss which. It also came in Botswana in 1932 and 1937 respectively to serious outbreaks of CBPP in cattle, which also spread to Namibian territory each time.

Zimbabwe

The border between Botswana and Zimbabwe is also a veterinary fence. Zimbabwe itself is divided by a total of around 4,500 km fence for the control of animal diseases into four zones: the " infected zones " correspond to the national park in which mutatis mutandis occur many wild animals and thus potential carriers of disease. The " vaccination zones " in which farm animals against potentially transmitted by wildlife diseases are vaccinated, are immediately adjacent to these " infected zones " to. At the " vaccination zones " limits the so-called " buffer zones " to which in turn comprise the " export zones " within which animal products are produced for export to Europe.