02 Jul 2014

The Ministry of Agriculture is committed to providing dynamic leadership in the development of sustainable, diversified and competitive agriculture to contribute to the achievement of food security, poverty alleviation and socio-economic growth in partnership with relevant stakeholders.

Officiating at the 20th Letlhakeng agricultural show over the weekend (June 28-29), Botswana Qualifications Authority's acting chief executive officer, Mr Abel Modungwa, said in an effort to achieve such, government had come up with policies and programmes such as ISPAAD, LIMID and Youth Development Fund, among others.

Mr Modungwa said because of such a heavy investment in the agriculture sector, the government requires returns, which meant farmers had to adjust to the changing conditions brought about by climate change to produce positive results.

“Times and seasons have changed, therefore we cannot continue to do things as they were done years ago,” he said. “Our environment is now characterised my very hot or very cold weather, unreliable rains that are most of the time late, low or heavy.”

Mr Modungwa said productivity in such a challenging environment cannot be achieved using out-dated tools and skills that are not suitable for the current climate.

“Farmers need to be more conversant on how and where to grow crops and keep animals, what methods to use, when to plough and breed. 

This will to a large extent improve our yields,” he said.

He said Botswana could not afford to rely on other countries for food but should aim to feed itself and to export the surplus.

He said according to the agro-ecological zones, Letlhakeng Sub District has been zoned for sorghum, small stock and beef because of its climatic conditions which are not favourable for other commodities. He added that farmers in the area had been trained in new methods of farming that could help the area reach its potential, such as row planting, moisture conservation, use of hybrid seeds as well as control of pests and diseases among others.

“I would therefore like to urge farmers to adopt these new technologies to increase production,” he said.

The Chairperson of the Letlhakeng Agricultural Show Committee, Mr Jacob Lebeko, advised farmers to view shows as a platform for networking benchmarking and showcasing their products.

Mr Lebeko said there had been a concerning tendency by farmers to abscond if they did not win any prizes at the show, something which he said was likely lower the standard if the attendance was low.

He urged the youth who have been funded through various government programmes to exhibit at agricultural shows as it would help assess whether such programmes are bearing fruit or not. ENDS