South Africa Government : Road Traffic Management on stray animal project in Elands Bay

Government distributing reflective animal tags to Elands Bay Emerging farmers to curb road crashes

Thirty emerging farmers from Elands Bay on the Cape West Coast today benefited from government's Stray Animal Project. Government departments from all three spheres today held the event in town.

At the event emerging farmers were given reflective tags that make their animals visible at night once fitted. The tag is fitted to the ear of the animal. .

The project has been running countrywide for a while but was taken to a national level in 2016 by the Road Traffic Management Corporation (RTMC).

The aim of the project is to provide farmers and livestock owners with tags for their animals. The tag that is reflective makes the animal visible at night and has proven to make animals visible to motorists at night, thus reducing the amount of crashes caused by stray animals on our roads. Animals killed on our roads affect emerging farmers financially.

More than 100 animals were tagged today.

Mrs Cylda Rwexana who represented the emerging farmers said currently they owned 400 goats and 400 pigs. The Cederberg Municipality has granted them a lease on a land close the town where their livestock are kept.

The role players In this integrated approach by government today were RTMC, the Road Accident Fund (RAF), the Provincial Departments of Transport and Public and Local Government, Cederberg Municipality, the South African National Parks, the SAPS Eland Bay stock theft unit, and the emerging farmers from Elands Bay.

Simon Zwane of the RTMC said the aim the project is to make animals visible. Zwane said farmers have a duty to ensure their animals are safe. He emphasized that RTMC was propagating the visibility of animals throughout the country.

'We are not saying the animals should be on the road but that if the animals do stray onto our roads especially at night, we have put measures in place to ensure those animals are visible,' He concluded.

For interviews please contact:
Simon Zwane
Cell: 082 551 9892