31 Mar 2026

Government has taken a deliberate decision through targeted import restrictions, investment in irrigation and strengthened extension services to create an enabling environment for local farmers to grow and compete.

Assistant Minister of Trade and Entrepreneurship, Mr Baratiwa Mathoothe made this assertion during the Tlokweng Horticultural Farmers Association field day at Modi le Seriti farm near Tlokweng on Thursday.

Mr Mathoothe said government’s interventions were bearing fruit as horticultural production from April 2025 to January 2026 had reached approximately 140 881 tonnes including 114 080 tonnes of vegetables, surpassing national demand by 1.8 per cent.

“Fruit production stands at 26 800 tonnes, representing about 67 per cent of national demand. Total planted area now exceeds 5 192 hectares. This progress clearly demonstrates that Botswana is moving in the right direction,” he said.

Minister Mathoothe said however, that work was not complete as Botswana remained a net importer of horticultural produce due to seasonal gaps, climate variability, water scarcity, high input costs and limited storage and processing infrastructure.

He said these were structural challenges that required both policy direction and practical solutions.

Mr Mathoothe said with 24 horticultural projects mostly small holder farmers operating on just one to three hectares, Tlokweng District was producing approximately 800 metric tonnes annually.

He said it was indeed a strong message that small scale farmers, when organised and supported, could make a significant contribution to the national production.

Mr Mathoothe said he was impressed by the adoption of the drip irrigation systems as the technology was essential in a water scarce area and key to improving yields while conserving water.

“The diversity of crops produced, ranging from citrus, mangoes and avocado to cabbage, tomatoes, onions and leafy vegetables demonstrates both resilience and market potential. However, increasing production alone was not enough, we must now shift our focus towards productivity, quality and affordability,” said Mr Mathoothe.

He highlighted that one of the biggest challenges farmers faced was access to markets and urged them to strengthen the value chain.

The farmers’ association chairperson Mr Kutlwano Mpudi said their collaboration with South Africa-based agro experts company NETAFIM was a special partnership as the latter were global giants in horticultural production.

He said they had engaged the company as technical partners as they had assisted in the technical aspect of their business.

Mr Mpudi said horticultural farmers were faced with challenges among them lack of proper access to markets, which was reversing their gains.

He said however there was light at the end of the tunnel as they had been in talks with some of those they supplied and they were waiting to sign some agreements.

Acting District Agriculture Coordinator Mr Orman Roy noted that the engagement of the technical experts was to expedite quality production and shift focus to exports.

He said some challenges which included climate change called for the deployment of technological practices. He said NETAFIM was engaged in order to impart knowledge to local farmers on the soil-plant relations for best quality production.

Mr Roy said the supply chain sector was also part of the day’s events in order to advice on market shares. 

He said horticulture was a high risk endeavour that required perfect standards to avoid losses in the line of business. He said they were working on a plan to send farmers to South Africa on a benchmarking exercise to appreciate how large-scale farmers went about with their production.

NETAFIM representative, Mr Martin Bahnemann urged farmers to maintain consistency in quality and quantity from their produce. He said water was a vital component in horticulture and urged the farmers to develop reliable irrigation systems for better production. ENDS