19 Jun 2013

Batswana have been encouraged to make use of a scheme in which government will help people acquire loans to build houses to rent to civil servants.

The Vice President, Dr Ponatshego Kedikilwe said, on June 18, that people could also form business partnerships to construct houses, which government could lease to ease the current shortage of accommodation for its employees.

He explained in a kgotla meeting at Damochujenaa in the Mmadinare constituency, that government would act as surety for the loans secured from local banks, which meant it would assist to repay the loans should people fail or experience difficulties in honouring their obligations.

Dr Kedikilwe stated that the initiative was a move to empower Batswana and address the acute shortage of accommodation experienced by civil servants. He said those who already have houses could make arrangements for government to rent their houses for civil servants.

Meanwhile, Dr Kedikilwe, who is also MP for Mmadinare,  advised farmers not to keep large herds of cattle to avoid heavy losses during droughts and outbreaks of Foot and Mouth Disease (FMD).

He advised them to keep smaller herds and sell the rest to earn revenue, which they could either save or use to improve their livelihoods.

The VP also urged Batswana not to rely only on livestock for their  livelihoods, but to create several ways of earning revenue such as building houses for rental. He said several ideas had been advanced to control the spread of FMD, including dividing FMD-prone areas into paddocks, electrifying the fence along the Botswana/Zimbabwe border to prevent elephants from destroying it thereby allowing cattle and buffaloes from infected areas to cross into Botswana.

Another idea, he said,  was to remove all livestock from land near the border and set up large scale vegetable projects or animal feed production fields.The motive behind the idea was that the fields would act as a buffer zone and prevent animal movement across both sides of the border.

Dr Kedikilwe also explained that the country was working with Zimbabwe to vaccinate livestock up to 40 km inside the neighbouring country to minimise the spread of the disease.

On other issues, Dr Kedikilwe informed his audience that the country was still reeling from the world economic recession and therefore had decided to prioritise its objectives and pursue projects that would contribute to the livelihoods of Batswana and the economy. ENDS