LAVUMISA – Drought has killed 99 cattle across 13 dip tanks at Maplotini, leaving farmers struggling to save their remaining herds.
Maplotini Bucopho Sabelo Zulu said veterinary services had confirmed the deaths, while another 26 cattle were slaughtered because of their deteriorating condition.
The death toll has almost doubled from the approximately 50 cattle deaths reported last week at Maplotini, under Somntongo Inkhundla.
Zulu said farmers had since reported previously unrecorded deaths between October and November, while more cattle had died over the past week.
He warned that the death toll could rise further following unverified reports of missing cattle suspected to have died in nearby forests.
Despite recent rainfall in parts of the country, Zulu said the drought continued to threaten livestock in Lavumisa.
Grazing remains dry, water sources are depleted and earth dams contain little more than mud.
Zulu said starving cattle were walking more than eight kilometres from Lavumisa towards Jozini in search of water and grazing.
However, some animals reach dams only to find mud instead of water.
Weakened by hunger and the long distances, some become trapped in the mud and die.
Zulu said the situation had become desperate as farmers struggled to provide water and feed for their remaining livestock.
He called on government to urgently desilt, rehabilitate and repair earth dams around Maplotini and Lavumisa to restore their ability to hold water.
Zulu said buying water was too expensive for farmers to sustain their herds, making government intervention necessary.
The latest deaths follow warnings issued last week during a stakeholder briefing in Nhlangano, where Shiselweni Regional Veterinary Officer Dr Allen Simbai Maruve outlined the worsening livestock crisis.
Representing the Ministry of Agriculture, Maruve said severe shortages of grazing and drinking water had weakened cattle, increased drought-related abortions and reduced livestock productivity.
He warned that the deaths threatened farmers’ livelihoods and national food security.
At the time, Maruve reported between 10 and 20 cattle deaths in the worst-affected communities of Hluthi, while Lavumisa had recorded more than 20 deaths.
At Hluthi, the worst-affected dip tanks included Tsekwane and Qomintaba.
Other dip tanks experiencing moderate stress were Hlalukane, Dabe, Hlongamanzi, Mgcuphane, Mthontela, Mdumela, Msila, Manzawayo, Siyaya, Goodwill and Mesutha.
Maruve identified Msuzaneni, Nquthu, Sikhalasabhodo, Mabande, Machanchasa, Tibane, Ntuthwakazi and Nyaningo as dip tanks affected by severe livestock water shortages in Lavumisa.
Meanwhile, National Disaster Risk Management Authority (NDRMA) Operations Director Sandile Tfwala urged farmers to sell some of their cattle before the animals deteriorated further.
Speaking during the stakeholder briefing, Tfwala advised farmers to use proceeds from livestock sales to buy feed bales and deworming medication.
He said farmers needed to take measures to protect their livestock while government worked on drought interventions.
Tfwala cited the droughts of 1992 and 2015–2016, during which farmers lost entire herds after delaying livestock sales.
He said some farmers had yet to recover from those losses.
Tfwala said a multi-sectoral drought response plan covered water supply, school feeding programmes, health interventions and emergency food relief for vulnerable communities.
He further said the DPM had indicated that Eswatini required E1.3 billion to respond effectively to the drought and assist affected citizens.
