29 Aug 2013

Residents of Lesoma have been encouraged to form cooperatives when trading in the same sector to increase competitiveness.

Addressing residents of Lesoma on Tuesday, Assistant Minister for Presidential Affairs and Public administration, Dr Gloria Somolekae informed residents that government was on a mission to revive cooperatives and that they should take advantage of the move.

“This will help you market yourself better with one voice and make you competitive as a team,” she noted. On poverty eradication initiative, the minister informed residents that there were about 45 000 Batswana living in abject poverty across the country, saying often they had no place, food and clothing.

“The poverty eradication project is therefore targeted at helping such people. Government build 200 houses per annum to alleviate their situation,” she explained. Residents of Lesoma complained about the collapsing small stock projects, especially goats. They explained that the breeds did not adapt well to their area resulting in high mortality rate.

However, the minister said individuals must be at liberty to choose the kind of project they were most comfortable with and one that would flourish in that particular area. A representative from ministry of Agriculture, Mr Rapelang Sebadieta explained that they mostly buy goats from the Gantsi area and that it is true that some of the breeds do not cope with the Chobe habitat. On other issues, the minister alerted residents of the increasing cases of cervical cancer country wide, advising women to seek medical help immediately as soon as they observe anything amiss in their bodies and refrain from waiting.

“Safe male circumcision also plays a part as areas where most men are circumcised tend to have lower rates of cervical cancer,” she said warning that circumcision is still no excuse to have unprotected sex. On that note, she informed residents that statistics indicate that there are 15 000 new HIV infections every year and the economic burden for the government has become too much.

“People have become so relaxed with the advent of ARVs but the money to maintain the programme run into billions, we could be using that money for developments,” she said. ENDS