15
May
Niël Terblanché Namibia's livestock sector, a cornerstone of the country’s agricultural economy, faces a significant divide due to the Veterinary Cordon Fence (VCF), often referred to as the Redline. The original purpose of this fence, which dates back to the German colonial period in 1896, was to stop the spread of infectious diseases like rinderpest and foot-and-mouth disease. Spanning approximately 1,250 kilometres from the Atlantic Ocean to Botswana, the VCF separates northern Namibia from its central and southern parts. The Parliamentary Standing Committee on Economics and Public Administration, during a fact-finding mission to communal farming areas in the country’s northern…