24 Sep 2013

The Assistant Minister of Agriculture, Mr Oreeditse Molebatsi has warned tractor owners to desist from demanding upfront payment when assisting farmers under the Integrated Support Programme on Arable Agriculture Development (ISPAAD).

Mr Molebatsi was responding to concerns raised by farmers at a kgotla meeting in Tsetsebye on September 17 that some tractors owners demanded upfront payment claiming it is for fuel.

“Following concerns that the P400 per hectare was way too little, government reviewed the charges and increased them for the upcoming plough season,” said Mr Molebatsi. He told farmers that only those who used row planting would benefit from ISPAAD while those who used traditional methods like broadcasting will not.

He explained that traditional farming methods did not produce adequate yields, and that the money that government spent in assisting farmers was not equivalent to the crop yield.

“The ministry spent a lot of money on farmers but failed to show a return on investment,” said Mr Molebatsi. He also advised tractor owners to buy all the necessary farming implements because tractors without planters and harrows would not be engaged to help farmers.

The minister also revealed that ISPAAD would provide farmers with hybrid and open pollinated seeds, herbicides, insecticides and fertilizers. He said the programme would also accommodate farmers that used draught power provided they plant in rows.

“The review of ISPAAD was not meant to strife farmers but to ensure that the nation gets sufficient food supply similar to countries like Malawi who produce enough food through subsistence farming,” said Mr Molebatsi. He further urged farmers to utilise integrated farming and a subsidized scheme to fence their fields.

Residents were also urged to build toilets at their cattle posts because the Botswana Meat Commission (BMC) records an average of 2000 cases of measles infections in cattle every month. Concerning foot and moth disease in zone 7, Mr Molebatsi informed residents that a feasibility study was being carried out to demarcate the area and others that are considered unmanageable.

In response, the residents commended government for the ISPAAD initiative saying it will ensure food security. They also called for the subdivision or creation of a buffer zone along Shashe River to contain the FMD virus. ENDS