Chairperson, one of the many challenges facing the agricultural, forestry and fisheries sector today is the shortage of critical skills, particularly in specialised fields such as the veterinary profession. This Bill seeks to address the insufficient availability of state veterinarians to confront increased animal disease outbreaks.
Currently there are only 2 500 registered vets in South Africa and of those 250 are employed by the state. Only 250 of all vets practise in rural areas. It costs the state R1,6 million to train a vet, therefore implementing a compulsory community service programme to promote access to veterinary services while giving graduates an opportunity to contribute to socioeconomic development in our country must be supported.
Currently South Africa produces only between 90 and 120 graduates per year. This is inadequate to deal with an increasing matrix of challenges. This Bill will go some way towards ensuring better access to veterinary services in rural communities. However, it is not a silver bullet and serious challenges to controlling outbreaks of disease remain.
Due to the shortage of state vets, legislation such as the Animal Diseases Act, Animal Improvement Act and the Meat Safety Act is not being policed by the Agriculture Department. These Acts are being ignored, specifically with regard to the registration of abattoirs and the establishment of an independent meat inspection service.
Livestock farming contributes significantly to local food security and international trade. In the context of globalisation, many countries are imposing animal health measures as a nontariff barrier to trade in order to protect domestic industry. Government's negligence towards animal health in South Africa is therefore costing us valuable export revenue.
The local ostrich industry has already suffered massive losses due to an outbreak of the H5N2 virus. Since the start of the outbreak, more than 50 000 birds have been culled in the Klein Karoo. South Africa has not been able to export ostrich meat to the European Union for the past 18 months, resulting in more than R1 billion in export revenue losses.
Also, more than 40% of the producers have left the ostrich industry, with huge job-loss implications. At the end of February 2011, South Africa lost its status as a foot-and-mouth disease-free country, with disastrous consequences for exports. The Red Meat Industry Forum said the outbreak had contributed to a loss to livestock industries of about R4 billion per year.
The forum also said it was frustrated by attempts to engage with the Minister of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries, Tina Joemat-Pettersson. Even as I speak, they have not been able to meet with her, nor is she responding to letters sent to her. [Interjections.]
The controversy surrounding the outbreak of Rift Valley fever last year must be mentioned as an example of how animal disease outbreaks in South Africa should not be handled. Farmers were initially blamed for the failure of the state-run Onderstepoort Biological Products' vaccine to protect animals against Rift Valley fever. But these farmers then proved that the vaccine did not, in fact, provide immunity against Rift Valley fever. Farmers are currently vaccinating without confidence or are forced to import costly generic vaccines, but generics are not specifically developed to treat disease peculiar to South Africa.
Clearly, the devastation of uncontrolled animal disease outbreaks is killing profitability and undermines the ability of commercial agriculture to keep or create jobs. The DA therefore supports the Bill, but we are concerned that it will become yet another superfluous piece of paper. This is because the institutional framework under which this sector has to operate is increasingly dysfunctional.
Just this morning the Minister failed to appear before the portfolio committee. She is ever evasive. This is a good skill for an ANC politician to have on the road to Mangaung, but her lack of leadership is killing significant sectors of the economy. She is never brought to account.
HON MEMBERS: Hear, hear!