Conclusion

In all likelihood vaccination remains the only control measure for BTB in wildlife populations. In the past decade, considerable progress has been made with the devel­opment of BTB infection models in various wild animal species including possums, badgers, African buffaloes, wild boars, and deer in which the efficacy of new vaccines can be tested.

Governments have an obligation to protect human and animal health at the interface of humans, domestic livestock, and wildlife. Given the significant eco­nomic impact of BTB on cattle farming and its zoonotic risk for human health, it is alarming that the situation in Africa over time has, at best, remained unchanged since the report by Cosivi et al. (1998) and despite experts calling for action to control the disease on the African continent (Olea-Popelka et al. 2017). This situation has now been exacerbated by the detection of BTB in a number of wildlife species, and their role as maintenance hosts of the disease.

African Governments must now take the expanding number of wildlife species infected with M. bovis, and the risk that they pose to the health and welfare of humans and livestock, into consideration if they want to act in the interest of their citizens and of conservation. Dealing with BTB, and attempting to control and eventually eradicate it, cannot be done without also taking the risks posed by the infection in wildlife, and the mostly unknown role that they play in the epidemiology of the disease in Africa, into consideration.

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