SADC ministers to prioritise livestock disease control, aquaculture and feed systems at Zimbabwe summit

ZIMBABWE – Southern African Development Community (SADC) will convene a Joint Meeting of Ministers Responsible for Agriculture, Food Security, Fisheries and Aquaculture on May 29 in Victoria Falls, with regional leaders expected to focus heavily on livestock disease control, aquaculture development, fisheries governance and agricultural input systems critical to Southern Africa’s feed and animal protein sectors.

The meeting, hosted in Zimbabwe, comes as Southern African countries continue to face mounting pressure from transboundary livestock diseases, climate-related production risks and growing demand for animal protein across the region.

The ministers’ session will be chaired by John Henry Steenhuisen in his role as Chairperson of the Joint Committee of SADC Ministers of Agriculture and Food Security, Fisheries and Aquaculture.

Ahead of the ministerial meeting, senior government officials from SADC member states will meet from May 26 to 27 to review the implementation of previous regional decisions and prepare recommendations on livestock, fisheries, and agricultural development priorities.

Livestock disease control and aquaculture high on agenda

Among the key livestock issues expected to dominate discussions is the regional response to foot-and-mouth disease (FMD), which has disrupted cattle production and livestock trade in several Southern African countries over the past year.

SADC ministers are expected to review progress made since the March 2026 SADC Council of Ministers meeting in Pretoria, which called for stronger cross-border surveillance, harmonised vaccination strategies, improved information sharing and increased resource mobilisation to contain FMD outbreaks.

The disease continues to threaten livestock-based livelihoods and regional meat exports, particularly in countries heavily dependent on cattle production.

The meeting will also assess regional crop and feed-related systems linked to livestock productivity, including implementation of the Harmonised Fertilizer Regulatory Framework, the Regional Strategy on Plant Health and the Harmonised Seed Regulatory System.

Officials are expected to discuss the SADC Rice Development Strategy and broader crop development programmes that support feed ingredient availability and agricultural resilience across the region.

Aquaculture and fisheries development are also expected to feature prominently on the agenda as governments seek to strengthen aquatic food production and reduce dependence on imported fish products.

Ministers will review implementation of the Programme for Improving Fisheries Governance and Blue Economy Trade Corridors (PROFISHBLUE), alongside progress in tilapia genetic improvement programmes and revisions to the SADC Aquaculture Strategy and Action Plan.

The discussions come as several SADC countries continue to invest in expanding aquaculture to address rising fish demand, strengthen food systems, and create employment opportunities linked to aquatic value chains.

Regional officials are also expected to review rainfall performance and production outlooks for the 2025/26 season and to assess forecasts for the upcoming 2026/27 production cycle, as weather variability continues to affect feed crop availability, grazing conditions, and fisheries productivity.

Additional discussions will cover progress under the Comprehensive Africa Agriculture Development Programme (CAADP), implementation of the STOSAR II regional agricultural policy programme and strategies aimed at increasing youth participation in agribusiness.

Outcomes from the Victoria Falls meeting will be submitted to the SADC Council of Ministers and are expected to contribute to the implementation of the SADC Regional Indicative Strategic Development Plan 2020–2030 and the bloc’s broader agricultural and fisheries development agenda.

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