05 Aug 2018

 Pandamatenga Commercial Farmers Association (PCFA) chairperson, Mr Hermann Venter has commended government for the drainage and road infrastructure development in their area.

Speaking at PCFA harvest day on August 2, Mr Venter said since February until March Pandamatenga received rains of between 600-800mm in six weeks and if it was not for the drainage system the farmers could not have been able to plant at all.

He said as a result of the government’s intervention through the drainage system the area still contributed significantly to the country’s food supply.

Mr Venter noted that apart from rains, the challenge encountered by farmers at the beginning of the planting season was that a lot of them were still not paid in full for the previous season by Botswana Agricultural Marketing Board (BAMB).

He said lack of payments did not, however, stop them from planting as they secured loans for the season and planted in faith that everything would be sorted by the time of harvest. 

He said in May quelea birds arrived in large numbers and started ravaging sorghum but still, government intervened to control them.

He thanked the Department of Crop Production for working excessive hours to ensure the birds were controlled. 

Mr Venter said through the farmers’ commitment and the government interventions the average sorghum yields increased from 1 tonne per hectare to between 3-5 tonnes per hectare.

He noted that through teamwork, for the past three years Botswana produced enough sorghum to be self-sufficient. For her part, the National Development Bank (NDB) CEO, Ms Lorato Morapedi said harvest day was one of the major milestones in the bank’s journey with Pandamatenga farmers.

She said the bank had been with the farmers since 1987 when the farms were allocated. Ms Morapedi said NDB’s annual investment in Pandamatenga increased from P8.5 million in 1987 to P81 million in the current financial year as per the growing needs of the farmers.

Ms Morapedi assured the farmers that NDB would continue to contribute towards food security, employment creation and economic development of the area. 

She said NDB- funded commercial farms in Pandamatenga employed up to 1 750 during peak periods and 1 300 during other periods while the commercial livestock farms and horticulture employed 150 and 300 people respectively.

Earlier in her welcome remarks, Kgosi Rebecca Banika urged the farmers not to despair in the face of challenges such as pests, diseases, elephants and quelea birds. 

Kgosi Banika encouraged the youth to emulate the farmers and venture into farming. ENDS