27 Sep 2013

It might come as a shock to someone who never leaves the city life to go out to the rural countryside where people really appreciate their daily bread.

Those used to having everything provided on a silver platter may get the jolt of their life to realise that there are people somewhere, and for that matter their countrymen, women and children who go through extreme hardships of life. These are men and women who appreciate every little piece of job being provided to them so that they can survive and care for their family members

. Among the many which the President came up with is the Ipelegeng programme which was established to assist many Batswana put bread on the table. In the village of Kareng, about 30 kilometres from Sehithwa, Ipelegeng has come handy for people residing in the small village. Due to lack of employment and other sources of income the residents depend on Ipelegeng for their bread and butter.

Their economic cycle was worsened by the Foot and Mouth Disease which literally condemned their livestock as they cannot trade with attractive markets. One of the residents in the village, Mr Simon Matundu who is also the vice chairman of the Village Development Committee said life has been difficult for them.

Even though he was thankful for the Ipelegeng programme he decried the low numbers which they have been allowed to hire. Mr Matundu argued that since there is nothing else they can live on except to earn some money from the programme they should be given a high number so that the villagers can benefit from it. He said Ipelegeng helps them to have something to eat at the end of the month plus being given something to eat for breakfast.

Matundu added that they are given a quota of 80 people which according to him is a little number considering the hardships they are going through. He said the other reason why he wants the number to be increased is that since they have been depending on cattle which they cannot sell now, things have turned from bad to worse.

Matundu commiserated with those who sell their cattle to the locals as they have to register with village development committee for their cattle to be slaughtered and sold for them by the committee.

He said the registered cattle owners’ numbers have skyrocketed to more than 300 as people want to sell so that they can care for their loved ones.

“This means that if one registers now with VDC, their animal can only be killed around next year if the situation does not change and the total which can be made out of the sale sometimes reaches as low as P500.”

Mr Matundu said this is why they need Ipelegeng now to augment their needs for life to go on. This shows that Ipelegeng has made a way out for people when they had nothing to lean on and at least something was done for them as a form of help. Some may pour water on the programme while others shun it claiming it does not benefit them. Nevertheless the truth for those who appreciate it cannot be silenced as they continue to thank the government for what it has done for them.

This does not only go for the Kareng residents alone but Batswana at large across the country. In Habu, the same programme has proved to be vital for the lives of people as they now can work and be able to fend for themselves at the end of the month. Even though they still have their lives and try to make other sources of income, Ipelegeng has eased their hardships for some time now. ENDS