24 Sep 2013

Botswana’s agriculture sector faces challenges that affect the industry’s contribution and growth.

The director of crop production, Mr Taelo Ramokapane, said this when addressing Matlapekwe farmers during the South East District community service day on September 19. Mr Ramokapane said the challenges in the sector contributed to the less quality and quantity of the agricultural produce in the country.
Among the challenge he cited the lack of commitment from farmers who were on the sector on part time basis.

He said the practice had caused Botswana to produce inadequately as well as failing to compete effectively with other countries with regard to food production. Mr Ramokapane said such farmers attended to their farming duties during weekends while others barely attended to their farming projects.

Hence, he said, farmers should take the sector serious as it had the potential to address unemployment, saying agriculture should not be regarded as second to one’s employment.

He called upon Batswana to take agriculture as a business, adding that the ministry through its agribusiness department was helping farmers to venture into the businesses in the sector. Other challenges affecting the industry, he said, included inadequate rainfall as well as climate change.

However, he said the ministry was committed to finding solutions to the challenges affecting the sector. For his part, Kgosi Nobi Moilwa of Mogobane commended the ministry for having taken their services to Matlapekwe farmers.

He said this was a relief to the farmers as not all would be able to travel to Ramotswa for services. However, he noted that there were other areas in the district which are far from Ramotswa, hence he asked the ministry to explore how to reach those.

One of the area farmers, Mr Mojelane Matshediso, said their projects are failing because of lack of water for livestock and crops. Hence, he pleaded with the ministry to assistant farmers to drill boreholes for watering livestock in the area. ENDS