Environment ministry orders distribution of meat of 90 drowned buffaloes to communities

Environment and tourism minister Indileni Daniel has directed that the meat of 90 drowned buffaloes be distributed to surrounding communities in the Zambezi region.

The buffaloes were reportedly fleeing lions from the Chobe National Park in Botswana earlier this week when they fell off a steep river bank and drowned. The incident was later discovered by a local farmer.

Parliamentarian Lilian Lutuhezi on Thursday questioned the minister on whether the meat has been tested amid safety concerns from some members of the public.

Lutuhezi said a few years ago after a similar incident, some community members helped themselves to the buffalo meat but when officials from the ministry arrived they were told it had tested positive for foot-and-mouth disease.

Affirmative Repositioning parliamentarian Frederick Shitana noted that buffaloes are known to be carriers of foot-and-mouth disease, which could pose a serious health threat to the community.

Daniel noted that measures are in place to address the community’s concerns.

“I can not verify yet if the meat was tested because the full report is still coming, but these are people with expertise and would know better,” she said.

She reiterated that this was a natural occurrence which has taken place three times over the past five years.

While acknowledging that it is an unfortunate situation, she said it is characteristic of the ecological dynamic of the region.

Daniel said the buffalo population in the northeast of Namibia stands at 11 900.

“In recognising buffaloes as a protected species, the ministry authorised the distribution of the meat to the conservancy communities supervised by police officials to ensure fairness, compliance, and public order,” she said.

She emphasised that the meat is strictly for personal consumption and not for sale.

Daniel said assessments conducted on surrounding rivers to prevent this from reoccurring have not yielded results but the search for a solution is ongoing. However, she noted that the ministry wants to avoid putting measures in place that may hinder the flow of the rivers.

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