12 Jul 2016

The gene bank collects seeds primarily of cultivated plants and their wild relatives and conserves them in a way that they will be available for future use by farmers, researchers and breeders. 

Answering a question in Parliament on Monday, the Assistant Minister of Agriculture, Mr Kgotla Autlwetse said those seeds represented all the indigenous crops. 

“The seed conserved in the gene bank has led to the development of new and better performing sorghum varieties such as segaolane and mmabaitse. More varieties are being developed using seed material from the gene bank,” he said.

Parliament was also informed that the ministry conducted research in different agro-ecological zones. So far, research was conducted at nine research stations across the country where different crop varieties were evaluated for adaption and performance, he added.

Mr Autlwetse explained that ‘this has resulted in the adoption of the current cropping system that is being followed in the country’.

He noted that cowpeas performed better than other crops in the Kgalagadi regions, whereas maize performs better under the molapo farming system (such as along Boteti, Chobe and Thamalakane rivers).

He said it was in 1989 when the ministry through the Department of Agricultural Research, established the National Plant Genetic Resources Centre to collect and conserve plant genetic resources in Botswana.

Furthermore, Mr Autlwetse said a back-up bank for conservation at regional level (SADC Plant Genetic Resource Centre) was in Zambia and internationally at the Svalbard Global Seed Vault in Norway.

“These back-up storages are excellent for long term conservation and the seed would be available in case natural disasters destroy the national storage,” he said.

The Member of Parliament for Ramotswa, Mr Samuel Rantuana had asked the minister to explain when the ministry would establish seed banks (Difalana) where original seeds of this country could be stored.

Mr Rantuana also wanted to know how agriculture was being promoted when the country does not have its own seed banks and if there was any research to find out what seed were suitable for different parts of the country. ENDS