03 Jun 2013

Acting Minister of Trade and Industry, Mr Keletso Rakhudu has applauded Mabutsane Sub-district civil service and the business community for the establishment and facilitation of a market day.

The May 31 market day was the second in a row for the sub-district. Mr Keletso Rakhudu said he was mpressed to have been informed that they had dug deep into their own pockets to sustain both activities, under the theme: Fostering Economic Diversification Through Local Market Exposure.

Mr Rakhudu said government attached great importance to the establishment of market days because they underpinned the road map towards total eradication of poverty and sustained economic growth strategy. He said open market days were a prerequisite for rapid economic growth and poverty eradication.

The acting minister said the day would contribute immensely to government’s efforts in practicalising policies and programmes geared towards improving the livelihoods of Batswana particularly in the agricultural sector. He urged the event organisers to ensure more days were set aside annually for the activities in future.

Mr Rakhudu further explained that government was preoccupied that backyard projects such as horticulture, bee-keeping and small stock be part of the projects that characterised the market, hence the Office of the President (OP) in collaboration with other ministries was taking a leading role in coordinating the establishment of open markets.

The minister toured the stalls where he was impressed by mongana jam and motlopi coffee, morama bread and butter among others. He urged residents to explore other natural resources to improve their livelihoods. He said they could apply for a mongana plantation where they would sustainably harvest ‘borokhu’ for jam.

Mr Rakhudu challenged residents to take cue from a renowned small stock farmer, Mr Piet Villander, who had sold 3 000 stock to purchase a brand new land cruiser. He said the farmer should be commended because he created employment for other Batswana.

Meanwhile, Southern District Council chairperson, Mr Leach Tlhomelang criticised the event organisers for not having afforded Mr Villander a slot on the programme for the day, to share his knowledge and experiences, although his contribution to the nation was phenomenal.

Southern District Farmers Association chairperson, Mr Tshepo Masire said the last year event was better in terms of organisation but pointed out that this year, the animals on exhibition stood out, in terms of quality.

He said the animals were pooled from Ghanzi, Kokotsha, Khakhea and Thankane. He said had the event been held on a weekend, things would have been different. Only one Boer goat ram was sold for P 3 600 during the auction sale that ensued after the keynote address.

Highlights for the day included the 800m horse race that was won by Mr Kenneth Keipeile with his horse, Remmogo.ENDS