A nationwide Foot and Mouth Disease (FMD) mass vaccination drive is underway, with a sensitization campaign launched in Kitgum District ahead of the exercise by the Ministry of Agriculture, Animal Industry and Fisheries (MAAIF).
The strategy marks a fundamental shift in national animal health policy, moving from emergency outbreak response to a compulsory, sustainable cost-recovery scheme.
Under the new model, livestock farmers must pay a direct fee for each vaccine dose to create a revolving fund aimed at eradicating the disease over the next decade.
Previously funded entirely by the government, the nationwide vaccination campaign will now split the financial burden.
MAAIF will fully cover all logistical expenses, including the procurement of high-potency quadrivalent vaccines from international producers, cold-chain infrastructure, regional distribution, and the facilitation of veterinary extension workers, while livestock owners are required to pay a subsidized fee of Shs 8,000per dose for cattle and pigs, and Shs 4,000per dose for goats and sheep.
Because the FMD vaccine only protects for six months, vaccinations will occur biannually, scheduled nationally for July–August and January–February.
Dr. Charles Oryem, a Senior Veterinary Officer at MAAIF, emphasizes that FMD vaccines are strictly controlled by the central government to ensure quality control against the specific viral stereotypes actively circulating in the region, unlike other vaccines handled by the private sector.
Richard Canodonga, the Kitgum District Secretary for Production, praised MAAIF for arriving proactively before an active FMD outbreak devastated local herds, and says livestock farmers can afford the vaccine.
By URN
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