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Kazo, Uganda | THE INDEPENDENT | The livestock markets of Bwatamara Buremba town council and Kazo Town Council in Kazo district have been reopened four months after its closure.
In March 2023, the district registered a new case of foot and mouth disease, and immediately announced several measures to contain the spread after the outbreak, which included a ban on open markets and cross-border movements.
Other measures included strict observance of the standard operating procedures to limit spread of the disease and selling livestock on farms.
Local cattle traders, farmers, and the Taskforce have since been engaged to open the markets.
In a letter dated 4th July, Divine Kyogabirwe the Kazo district Chief Administrative officer said that the Taskforce reviewed the foot and mouth disease status in the district and agreed to reopen the markets.
She narrates that despite the reopening of the markets public needs to be vigilant to report any suspected cases of FMD in their areas but also report cases where livestock are exposed to market without official and accepted documents.
“We need people to report animals without proper documentation this will help us in fighting not only disease spread but also animal theft in the district”.
Boaz Tumusiime, a cattle farmer says his earnings had dwindled since the markets were closed and he was choking on loans.
He adds that most cattle traders have been redundant for the last four or five months had shifted business to the neighboring districts of Kiruhura and Ibanda hoping that now that the livestock markets are open again so they can return.
Kazo district is among the districts in the cattle corridor that have struggled to contain the Foot and Mouth disease for the last four years. Others are Sembabule, Ibanda, Mbarara district and city, Isingiro, Lyatonde, and Kiruhura.
This has affected both the district and the communities’ economic fortunes, with most districts registering a downturn in local revenue collections.
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