12 Oct 2020

Government is committed to empowering the youth through creation of opportunities to engage in agribusiness enterprises and linkages to private sector as well as development agencies,  Vice President Slumber Tsogwane has said.

Speaking in an interview shortly after a presidential COVID-19 task team meeting held at Morning Side Farms & Gardens in the Southern District on October 12, the vice president said government had therefore developed a mixed agricultural land use policy to promote integrated farming and agro-tourism activities. 

He applauded the facility’s youthful owners, Mr Odirile and Ms Magdeline Likuni, for meaningfully contributing to President Mokgweetsi Masisi’s initiative to diversify farm usage through the promotion of integrated farming and agro-tourism.

“Morning Side Farm is only a 10-hectare plot that clearly epitomizes agro-tourism and integrated farming that President Masisi has been promoting in recent times particularly that it houses most of the birds species, animal husbandry, event gardens and accommodation chalets,” said the vice president.

 He said the presidential initiative to host cabinet meetings on citizen-owned farming facilities was a way of motivating and capacitating farmers to fully utilise farms to ensure sustainability.

 The initiative would therefore be rolled out nationwide, he said.

 For her part, Ms Likuni expressed gratitude for the initiative saying it was pleasing that government had prioritised agro-tourism as an important sector for reviving the tourism industry.

Ms Likuni explained that the farm was initially earmarked for dry farming only but was converted into an integrated farming and events management facility in response to the President’s call to diversify farm usage.

She said it was encouraging that government agreed with the sentiment that agriculture was one of the critical pathways out of poverty and unemployment for young people.

Ms Likuni said accelerating the involvement of youth in agriculture and agri-business would also help meet development goals.

Commenting, Mr Likuni pleaded with government to invest in young people through a commitment to provide financial support including increased spending on youth initiatives along agricultural value chains.

 Government, he said, should create a conducive environment for young people to venture into agricultural projects.ends