28 Apr 2021

President Dr Mokgweetsi Masisi’s smallstock initiative is changing the landscape of smallstock farming in more ways than one.

While the initiative is, for some of the beneficiaries, an opportunity to not solely depend on taking advantage of bucks and rams belonging to neighbouring farmers to service their females as the animals mix up in communal grazing areas, for others it offers an opportunity to improve their breeds so as to reap better benefits from them.

In Xhumo in the Boteti region, 43-year-old Mr Badiredi Sechele’s job as a driver/operator with the Orapa Debswana mine ended in 2015. As such President Masisi’s smallstock initiative is a welcome development for him.

Of great interest to the father of six, who is now solely focused on farming and will not be seeking employment ever again, is the assurance that government has and is continuing to explore external markets for smallstock.

This, to Mr Sechele, offers an important window of hope as it will broaden his market and thus ensure that he attains better returns from his farming venture.

To date his main market remains government through the various other initiatives through which Batswana can acquire smallstock.

Occasionally, Mr Sechele sells to individuals, particularly those starting out on smallstock farming.

“Today’s gift [of a ram] will change my breed and help me to be better positioned for when selling to outside markets starts. 

I am therefore grateful that I have been given this rare opportunity to benefit from the initiative,” he notes.

Mr Sechele, who started his smallstock project in 2004 with 10 sheep and seven goats, has tended to his livestock with great dedication and seen his flock multiply to around 58 goats and a well over 100 sheep.

He has over the course of his venture sold some of his animals and with the proceeds he was able to build himself two two-roomed houses, one in Xhumo and another in Letlhakane, as well as a five-roomed house still in Letlhakane.

“I connected electricity to these houses using money from the sale of goats and sheep. 

I have also built my mother a two-roomed house here in Xhumo,” he explains.

The farmer has also bought two vehicles through returns from his smallstock venture.

“Ke rekile dikolotsana tse pedi ka madi a thuo. Ke ne ke rekisa dihutshane le dikgomonyana mme ka kgona go pataganya ke bo ke reka tsone dikoloinyana tse pedi tse ke buang ka tsone tse,” Mr Sechele states.

Mr Sechele is among the 16 beneficiaries in Boteti West and East constituencies, who this week benefitted from President Masisi’ smallstock initiative.

At a brief ceremony to hand over his ram, he expressed gratitude for the animal, and assured Vice President Mr Slumber Tsogwane, who was handing over the gift that he would share it with others in Xhumo.

“Ke tlaa thusa ba ke bapileng le bone ka phelehu e gore nna le bone re gole mmogo mo thuong,” he promised.

Vice president Tsogwane said Dr Masisi, as a champion of Vision 2036, wanted to see small and medium scale farmers take smallstock rearing as a business and use it to improve their standard of living.

He also commended farmers in the Boteti area for their support in ensuring that the smallstock initiative becomes a success by contributing rams and bucks towards it.

Mr Tsogwane concurred with Mr Sechele that the ram would place him in a better position to access and enjoy the benefit of outside markets. Ends