In a demonstration of solidarity during a time when the Southern African Development Community (SADC) is grappling with outbreaks of the highly contagious foot-and-mouth disease (FMD), Botswana has donated doses of vaccines to Zimbabwe.

The acting Minister of Lands and Agriculture, Edwin Dikoloti, made the announcement at a media briefing on the status of foot-and-mouth disease in Botswana.

Dikoloti stated that this gesture is driven by the desire to combat the highly contagious disease in the villages along the Botswana/Zimbabwe border.

"The government has approved the request by the Ministry of Lands and Agriculture to donate 50,000 doses of foot-and-mouth disease vaccines to Zimbabwe so that cattle within the ten-kilometer radius can be vaccinated for FMD."

The vaccines are valued at N$24.5 million and will cover two rounds of vaccination.

The foot-and-mouth disease continues to wreak havoc in the SADC region, with over 300,000 cattle quarantined in Zimbabwe alone.