25 Jan 2018

Record sweltering temperatures that have of late hit Botswana and seemingly resultant effects of drought can be a sign that global warming; also referred to as climate change is finally here.

BOPA recently took off and formed part of the Minister of Agricultural Development and Food Security and Kanye North lawmaker, Mr Patrick Ralotsia’s day long tour of a number of production areas to find out how farmers were muddling through under the circumstances.

If the fast dissipating water levels from some of the dams and foliage due to unforgiving heat are anything to go by, 2018 will be a year scores of farmers would love to hate for many years to come.

Already there are signs that if the heavens will not open up sooner than later, even the hard-wearing faith of a farmer will be stretched beyond limit this time around.

Mmasenyetse lands in Ngwaketse Central was the first destination where dam levels were at their lowest; a development that had farmers in the area worried.

One of the farmers, Mr Tshepoyaone Itshabeng relayed to Minister Ralotsia that save for unavailability of rain, it was all systems go.

“Our only concern is that rains are not coming forth, a first in this country in a long time,” he said.

Should this grave situation continue unabated, Mr Itshabeng’s only solace was for government to declare 2018 a drought year.

Mr Diteko Nthomang countenance said it all; so bleak was the situation he was even considering driving his herd elsewhere because water level at Mmasenyetse dam was fast drying up.

In Ramonnedi, Mr Dickson Motse shared other farmers’ sentiments, adding that he was fast giving up hope of ever ploughing this season.

“I had intended to plough maize and lablab, but it does not look like it will rain anytime soon,” he said.

Mogapinyana Farmers Committee vice secretary, Mr Meadow Dinoge said 2018 was likely to go down into the annals of history as a bad year for farmers.

“We plough to feed the nation, but every day the prospects of ploughing looks highly unlikely,” he said adding that frustration was now creeping in among farmers in the area.

Gloomy as the situation seems, Mr Dinoge called on fellow farmers not to give up hope, but to particularly consider ploughing for purposes of feeding livestock should late rains come.

Mr Ralotsia, a farmer himself, empathised with the farming community about the dire climatic conditions.

Having traversed a number of places within the Southern District to assess the condition of both arable and pastoral farming, Minister Ralotsia conceded the situation was deteriorating with each passing day.

“If it does not rain soon, the situation will go from bad to worse with nothing for livestock to eat in the second half of the year,” he relayed to BOPA, adding that it was imperative that farmers should consider reducing the number of animals to restock during bumper years.

Doing so, he stated will help reduce water volumes needed to water livestock as well as animal feed thereby proving cost effective to the farmer.

Moreover, Mr Ralotsia has challenged farmers to exercise patience and not just plant under unfavorable conditions as that will not be cost effective.

“Should it rain, farmers in the southern part of Botswana are expected to plant before January 31, while those in the northern part have up to February 15 to do so,” he said.

Farmers, he said should plough especially sorghum and beans as they do not only mature quickly, but are able to withstand drought conditions.

On steps taken before declaring drought, Minister Ralotsia said one could not just do so without following due process that had been in place for years.

“You cannot just declare a drought year by merely looking at the condition of the vegetation with your naked eye and without looking at many other aspects of the economy as some people think,” he said.

He said prior to arriving at such a position, the Office of the President first had to dispatch an assessment team that would after thorough investigations advice Cabinet and government accordingly on the gravity of the conditions.

Based on recommendations from the assessment team in question, he explained that government would declare whether or not it was a year of drought where a number of measures would be taken to assist different groups of people in various ways to survive looming drought. Ends