The shock announcement this week by South African Equine Health and Protocols (SAEHP) that they had been forced to suspend the provision of a range of key services due to circumstances ‘beyond their control’, has seen a pledge from the Racing Association of a monthly cash sum – conditional upon other stakeholders coming to the party.
RA CEO Natalie Turner, pictured above, said in a statement issued to the Sporting Post on Wednesday that they are aware that the movement of horses across the country is facilitated by SAEHP.
This is due to the State not having sufficient capacity to take on the role due to resource constraints.
The majority of the costs of SAEHP are for the movement of horses between provinces while the balance is focused on export protocols.
The RA want to encourage the movement of horses between provinces in order to support feature racing throughout the country. They see seasonal stakes as the future model for South African racing and therefore the movement of horses in between provinces is crucial.
This facility is extremely important for owners. SAEHP provides a necessary service in the maintenance of the national equine disease control system. Exports are vital and without the disease control systems not only will exports be impossible, but the country’s entire disease control system will breakdown.
As this is of particular importance to owners, the RA have committed to offer support to SAEHP in the amount of R 100 000 per month for the next 6 months, this is on the condition that they are able to raise similar amounts from other stakeholders in the industry.
“The RA strongly believes that the South African racing industry should incorporate this into the cost of racing and we appeal to all operators and other industry bodies to come together in support of SAEHP in order to find a permanent solution,” concluded Ms Turner.
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