07 Nov 2022

Attaining food security requires collective efforts by all stakeholders in the agricultural sector.

Member of Parliament for Kanye North, Mr Thapelo Letsholo said this at Head Mountain of God Apostolic Church in Zion - Kanye branch Thobo ceremony on Sunday.

Mr Letsholo, therefore, urged Batswana to utilise government programmes at their disposal to produce food and subsequently reduce the import bill.

“Government is committed to improving the agricultural sector as evidenced by various programmes intended to improve food production locally.

I encourage you to inform yourselves about these programmes and utilise them,” he said.

He said the recent COVID-19 protocols that resulted in movement restrictions were a wake-up call for Batswana to double their efforts towards attaining food security.

He also noted that government took a deliberate decision to restrict importation of some vegetables in an effort to promote local production.

Conversely, Mr Letsholo acknowledged that there were likely to be teething problems as horticultural farmers were still adjusting to the demanding market.

He was, however, optimistic that the quality of locally-produced vegetables would improve over time, saying ‘morogo wa ngwana ga o tlhotshwe ditlhokwa, e bile takataka ga a tshwane le tshoo’.

He added that even though it was important for those who had produced more to share with others, it was vital to emphasise hard work.

“Batswana have always promoted hard work and discouraged laziness.

We should also teach people to catch fish as compared to always providing for them,” he said

A businessman and consultant, Mr Taolo Moshaga underscored the need for collaborations for improved results in all areas of life, including agri-business ventures.

He called on Christians to reclaim their position in society and tackle divisive behaviour that affected growth.

“As Christians we have lowered our standards, hence we see a lot of challenges facing the world today.

Christians should live a life full of love and integrity and avoid behaviours that are divisive such as factionalism and gossip.

It does not matter which church you attend, you must understand that at the end of the day we all serve the same God,” he said.

He said celebrating harvest also challenged them to introspect as believers and what they aspired to harvest in the end.

“Harvest is a broad word that entails all areas of life, including spirituality.

“Your faith should assure you that whatever you conceptualise is achievable,” he said.

Another businessman and farmer, Mr Boiki Tema applauded government for programmes intended to enhance food production locally and ultimately attain food security.

He also urged Batswana to utilise the programmes and encourage young people to venture into farming.

However, he said the agricultural sector was experiencing challenges such as adverse weather conditions and poor market, among others.

He urged people to optimally utilise whatever resources they had at their disposal.

“I encourage you to use whatever size of land you have to produce food, and parents should also allow the young generation to venture into farming.

Since our rainfall is not reliable, I can advise you to have boreholes in your farms to maximise production,” he said.

For his part, resident pastor, Reverend Gabathate Maswabi said the ceremony was intended for the congregants to honour God with thanksgiving.

He said even though the original idea was from an agricultural perspective, the harvest celebration applied to all blessings they had received in various ramifications of their lives.

“I implore you to make it a habit to honour God with a fraction of your harvest, no matter how small it is.

Every year we gather to pray for rain so that we can have a good harvest, hence we should also come with thanksgiving at the end of the season,” he said.

He noted that the collected proceeds would benefit the church and under-privileged people in the community. ENDS