06 Nov 2016

Member of Parliament for Takatokwane, Mr Ngaka Ngaka, says government should develop infrastructure to encourage investment.  

Debating the draft National Development Plan (NDP) 11 in Parliament, Mr Ngaka said the current infrastructure did not support private sector growth, saying some rural areas did not have access roads.

He said the private sector could help the country in areas of employment creation and economic growth, but the rural areas were neglected, hence the rural-urban migration.

Mr Ngaka said it was time to act rather than just talk about climate change, saying it had negatively affected agriculture.

He said government should have undertaken research to guide farmers on the types of crops they could plant following changes in the raining pattern.

The MP further said government should invest in renewable energy, adding the country did not have solar energy plant.

He said villages that were not connected to the national grid could be provided with solar energy.

The MP further said there had been talk about the Trans Kalahari Railway line, but up to now it had not been constructed although it was economically beneficial.

Chobe MP, Mr Machana Shamukuni said he was concerned that the NDP 11 development expenditure would come from mining revenue and customs and excise.

He stated that the mining industry was highly volatile, while the customs and excise was also uncertain as the Southern African Customs Union (SACU) revenue sharing formula negotiations were under way.

Mr Shamukuni said he was not shocked about the BCL closure, saying minerals were not to last forever underground, hence the need to diversify the economy.

He further said he was happy with the macroeconomic strategies being introduced during NDP 11, saying they were solid.

The Chobe legislator said government should look into few sectors such as tourism and agriculture.

Talking about tourism, he said the sector has potential to create employment opportunities, saying currently 32 500 people were directly employed in the sector and contributes 3.3 per cent towards GDP.

MP Shamukuni said the youths should also be encouraged to venture into agriculture and further, infrastructure should be provided.

He said given Botswana’s limited domestic market, the country should be at the fore front of encouraging regional integration to facilitate trade.

MP Shamukuni welcomed the new Fiscal Rule to be introduced in NDP 11 and further said there has to be legal limits on the amount of money that could be withdrawn from the Pula Fund and the Government Investment Fund.

For his part, Mogoditshane MP, Mr Sedirwa Kgoroba said he was disheartened by the closure of the BCL, saying government should have prepared on time.

He said in April, government injected P1 billion into the Selebi Phikwe based copper/nickel mine and wondered what might have transpired to lead to its closure few months after money was injected. ENDS