22 Jan 2017

Batswana have been urged to be innovative and reduce dependency on government.

Nata/Gweta MP, Mr Polson Majaga, said this during a kgotla meeting in Mosetse on Thursday January 19.

The MP said this after some residents complained that despite the good rains, they had not ploughed since tractors were not enough and those available failed to cover those who wanted to plough on time.

They had also appealed to government to make means of providing tractors to be used so that they could take advantage of government programmes such as ISPAAD.

Mr Majaga therefore advised them not to depend on government for everything noting that when government provided tractors, it was a pilot project aimed at sensitising farmers on new methods of ploughing such as row planting.

“And that gesture by the government should not be misunderstood to be a permanent arrangement that will have some waiting instead of making arrangement with available tractor owners to plough for them,” he said.

By introducing ISPAAD, he said government was taking intensive measures to encourage Batswana to go back to the fields and plough to produce enough food for them and even for other Batswana in order to help the government reduce the food import bill.

“Almost everything is done for us Batswana in terms of ploughing as seeds that are provided including fertilisers,” he said.

He therefore said with everything set on the platter, it was upon Batswana to do their part to meet government half way adding that they could raise funds for farming machinery by grouping themselves. BOPA