01 Dec 2013

Lobatse MP, Mr Nehemiah Modubule has requested government to establish an economical diversification unit for Lobatse similar to the Selebi Phikwe Economic Diversification Unit (SPEDU).

When tabling the motion in Parliament on November 29, Mr Modubule indicated that Lobatse was gradually descending in to a ghost town despite being the oldest town and at one point intended to be the capital of Botswana. Given its historical significance to the country, he said Lobatse should by now be one of the oldest growing towns in the country.  

“With waning economic activities in Lobatse, the town is heading for a complete abandence as everyone seems to be in hurry to leave Lobatse. According to the 2001population census, the population of Lobatse was 29, 689 and it dropped to 29, 007 in 2011.  Population and Housing census indicate that the majority of people totaling 18, 745 or 63 percent then were unemployed and the number is likely to have tremendously increased by now,” said Mr Modubule.

He indicated that the 2011 population decrease could be attributed to the declining economic activities in the town. The economy of Lobatse, he said faces stagnation and the private sector has failed to take the lead line with the NDP 8 theme of ‘Sustainable economic Diversification’, as industries are either closing down are relocating to other towns as was the case with Ben Rose Industries which closed down, Lobatse Tile Limited which used to employ close to 210 people also closed down and Lobatse Clay Works also has its main challenges.

He said Botswana Meat Commission has significantly retrenched its own staff adding the future of BMC also looks uncertain when one consider its current state of affairs.  With the relocation of the High Court and the closure of the Lobatse College of Education, Mr Modubule said the town faces extinction as these were major employers in the town.

He said although Lobatse is classified as a primary center in terms of the National Settlement Policy, its proximity to other primary centers particularly Gaborone means that it faces strong competition for private investments necessary for stimulation of local economic development and creation of employment opportunities.

He further stated that, due to its dependence on beef production, the town should be declared an industrial town to achieve economic growth and sustainable -development.  

“Tourism and manufacturing can also be used to diversify the economy of the town and this can be strengthened by investment promotion capacity through introduction of programs similar to the Selebi-Phikwe Economic Diversification Unit,” he said.

He added that in order to accelerate diversification of the economy of Lobatse from agro-based industry to manufacturing and tourism industry, there is need to make Lobatse a tourism area by exploiting its scenic beauty and areas of historical importance.

Therefore, Lobatse legislator called for a number of feasibility studies to look into possible diversification industries to recommend projects that can be of economic benefit to the Lobatse.  

When debating on the motion, Minister of Trade and Industry, Ms Dorcas Makgato-Malesu disagreed with the motion stating that the establishment of SPEDU was treated a special case since Selibe Phikwe primarily heavily dependent on the mine and it surfaced that the mine life span was under threat hence government had to move in to secure the town of Selibe Phikwe and carried out an intense feasibility study on how to resuscitate its economic status.

Although she said she does not oppose the need to carry a feasibility study in Lobatse, but said that can be done thorough Local Authorities to ascertain what can be done through normal budgeting processes. 

The Minister stated that her constraint is the fact that there is likelihood each and every constituency in the country would require a similar unit should Lobatse be assigned its own unit, since it is apparent that all constituencies would like their economic activity to be diversified and that is currently a vision that is being done at local normal levels.

She said it will not be sustainable for government to set up a SPEDU kind of arrangement for every town or constituency in the country.

The minister said government is already in the process of diversifying the economy of Lobatse by establishing the P258 million leather park project and the proposed dairy project that will be also set up in Lobatse. Ends