04 May 2017

The Southern District Farmers Association has drawn inspiration from the Maun community through an operation centre called 911.

The initiative aims to secure property from disasters, and was started by a few people to combat crime in Maun, but has grown to benefit the community at large.

During a two-day workshop on how to combat the outbreak of veld fires held in Jwaneng recently,  the Southern District Farmers Association noted that it could also benefit them in cases of wild fires, stock theft and managing predators.

Brainstorming the way forward, farmers observed that an initiative similar to that of 911 in Maun could assist them.

They noted that some of the challenges which made response to disasters slow was the lack of reliable transport, shortage of manpower as well as communication and information dissemination of where the disaster was.

They said although they were aware of a disaster rapid response team in Kanaku and Thankane, getting hold of them was a challenge.

The farmers said the centre would coordinate activities to help in the saving of unnecessary expenses, and that Jwaneng was the ideal place for the operations centre as it had different departments that could provide assistance.

The association also formed teams of farmers based on their geographical areas, and taught them what to do in cases of disaster outbreaks, especially veld fires.

They suggested that dikgosi should also be trained and that everyone should be made aware of their roles to avoid confusion when disaster arised. ENDS