JOHANNESBURG - South Africa is finally going big against foot-and-mouth disease.
Agriculture Minister John Steenhuisen has announced the full-scale vaccination of the national cattle herd.
This comes as farmers, particularly in KwaZulu-Natal, continue to battle one of the worst outbreaks in decades.
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Despite over 900,000 animals vaccinated so far, infections continue to spread due to uncontrolled livestock movement.
Government is now moving to vaccinate the entire national herd, beginning with the hardest-hit provinces.
There's a need to expand vaccine production, securing millions of additional doses, and improve laboratory capacity to speed up testing.