29 Aug 2018

Tlokweng Sub-district chairperson Ms Norah Nkwe says there is low uptake of the Livestock Management and Infrastructure Development (LIMID) programme in the sub district. 

Briefing the sub-council meeting on Monday, Ms Nkwe said from April to June, only five small stock applications were received under LIMID and that the programme has remained open until September.

She  pleaded with councillors to urge their communities to apply for the programme intake and improve their lives. She said despite the low uptake of LIMID programmes,  the sub-district has experienced an increase in pork and meat production during the same period..

She attributed this to an increase in piggery projects from three to five, while on the same period, seven tonnes of broiler meat was produced from five self-funded small scale producers.

 Ms Nkwe further encouraged councillors to lure small scale producers to engage in table egg production which currently has few producers.

 She noted that the market for small scale farmers existed in primary schools in the menu that required eggs.

 With regard to the youth economic empowerment, Ms Nkwe regretted that the youth development fund projects were not performing satisfactorily in the sub district.

 “It is evident that youth funded projects are not able to sustain themselves enough to service their loans,” she stated.

From the 115 youth beneficiaries who should be paying their loans as per the signed agreement, only seven companies had paid their loans, though inconsistent since the financial year begun. 

Out of the targeted minimum collection of P23 400 in the previous quarter, the department has managed to collect only P12 300.

 She said the failure rate for most projects could be attributed to lack of commitment towards the projects.

 “The other recurring challenge is that of lack of operational space and high rentals which tend to cripple the projects even before they begin,” she stated.

 With regard to social welfare in the sub district, Ms Nkwe said the district had previously carried mass review of destitute persons and needy students in which 170 clients were targeted.

 She said the exercise was done in order to verify the data base with the actual head count of beneficiaries being assisted as well as establish if the registered clients were still eligible for the social safety nets.

 From the assessment, 26 clients were not eligible  for assistance and recommended to be  terminated from the programme .

However, she regretted that the department was still experiencing influx of clients requesting to be assisted due to the village’s proximity to Gaborone as people who seek employment reside mostly in Tlokweng. ENDS