Botswana's Cattle-Rearing Culture Threatened By Drought

Longer and harsher droughts are driving a growing share of Botswana's traditional cattlemen to give up their animals.

According to an agricultural census released by Statistics Botswana last year, the country's estimated cattle population has fallen from 2.5 million in 2011 to 1.7 million in 2015. The number of households raising cattle also has plunged, from about 75,500 in 2004 to 39,000 in 2015, a more than 45 percent decline, it noted.

In a country where cattle have long been a rural stash of savings, smaller herds affect how families... feed their children, buy school uniforms, and pay for everything from weddings and to burying the dead.

The loss of cattle also threatens the country's traditions and culture. Cattle skins have long been used to produce traditional dance attire for men, women and children, as well as clothing for traditional chiefs. But more recently cotton cloth and blankets, worn as shawls, have begun to replace hide clothing.

Botswana these days earns 70 percent of its earnings from diamond exports, not agriculture, which today produces less than 3 percent of GDP. But livestock still accounts for 80 percent of the southern African country's agricultural earnings.

Boikhutso Rabasha, a spokeswoman for the Ministry of Agriculture, said she worries about the country's continuing ability to produce enough beef. Beef exports from Botswana have been declining for the past 35 years, she said.

Full article...

Botswana’s 40-degree centigrade heat frizzles the maize crop

by Thobile Hans

The Botswana government has vehemently embraced the Africa Group and the G77+China positions at the Durban COP17 climate change negotiations.

Speaking at the high-level plenary, Botswana Minister of Environment Wildlife and Tourism Onkokame Mokaila said they were “highly optimistic that we can collectively reaffirm our commitment and common interest to the UN Convention, the Kyoto Protocol and the Bali Action Plan as guiding principles and a road map to sustainable development”.

Since discussions started under the UNFCCC, emissions “have not reduced”

“The negative impacts of climate change have continued to erode our development effort as developing countries,” he said.

Botswana expected the Durban conference to take decisions on the second commitment to the Kyoto Protocol and to fully operationalise the Cancun Agreement, including the establishment and capitalization of the Green Climate Fund to provide necessary initial start-up.

Botswana was semi-arid and landlocked and vulnerable to climate change.

“The effects of climate change have manifested themselves in frequent and severe droughts, floods, storms and heat waves. Botswana has. of late, been experiencing unprecedented temperatures of 41 degrees Celsius. ”

He painted a damning picture.

“A 30 percent reduction in yield of cereal crop comprising maize and sorghum was attributed to extreme temperatures. Cereal crop occupies approximately 75% of land under arable agriculture. This has exacerbated our food security problem and remains a threat to our poverty eradication efforts. The demand on our disaster preparedness and response is increasingly placing a heavy burden on our limited resources.”

The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) predicted with “over 80 percent certainty” that Botswana was facing water scarcity.

“It is against this backdrop that we have taken adaptation as a priority in order to attain resilience to climate change.

Reporting Development Network

The cost of neglecting farms in Botswana

Botswana has blacklisted 1,587 arable farmers since 2009 for leaving their lands unattended.

"For the 2010/2011 cropping season the recorded number of blacklisted farmers currently stands at 363, while the number of farmers who were blacklisted in the country in the 2009/2010 cropping season is 1,224," said assistant Agriculture minister Oreeditse Molebatsi at a press briefing.

Mr Molebatsi said the farmers were blacklisted because they did not monitor fields after ploughing, some left crops to be destroyed by livestock, others failed to fence their farms while the rest neglected fields or failed to weed.

Despite the fact that Botswana is still recovering from the recent economic recession and the fact that it is advocating for productive agricultural growth in its economic diversification drive, the government is adamant it not to assist blacklisted farmers until the farmers prove to the authorities that they are fully committed.

"Government will only resume assisting the blacklisted farmers only after they have showed commitment to taking care of their fields. If farmers show commitment they will be taken back on board," said Mr. Molebatsi.

Moreover, he said that farmers should have ploughed, bought seeds and fertilizer for themselves, benefits which the farmers enjoyed free of charge from the government before being blacklisted.

"The total ploughed or planted area that was destroyed by livestock in the Shoshong constituency during 2010/2011 was 306.45 hectares with inputs costs amounting to $19,200," he said.

Xinhua

Big cattle herd worries Botswana

by Mpho Tebele

Botswana is struggling to control the number of cattle in the far north of the country.

Botswana Meat Commission (BMC) CEO David Falepau said the massive cattle herd in Ngamiland was due to absence of adequate slaughter facilities. The area, classified a 'red zone', is prone to outbreaks of foot and mouth disease.

'Ecologically there is an over population in Ngamiland. There are insufficient resources to support the capacity. The capacity is 250 000 and the population of cattle in Ngamiland is double that,' he said.

This has seen the government reach an export agreement with Angola through the Agriculture and Trade ministries. 'The prices there (in Angola) are actually stronger than the South African market and definitely stronger than the Botswana market,' said Falepau.

He said they could have built a big abattoir to cater for the area but 'in the end the only really solution was to export live cattle to Angola'.

'There is no problem with exporting cattle from red zone to a country that has seen the disease already; for instance Angola. 'We have been supplying from the green zone (FMD-free areas) to Angola and that is not sufficient,' said Falepau.

He said the breeding system was also to blame for the huge herd and urged farmers to market their beasts at recommended ages.

'The best thing is to reduce the oxen and put weaners in the feedlot to increase the number of cattle available for the valuable market,' he said.

He said the BMC started slaughtering for the Angolan market on October 31, though they faced logistical challenges.

He said the meat commission had identified another lucrative market in the DRC.

Analysts and Members of Parliament have argued against exports of live beasts, saying such a policy had resulted in the collapse of Botswana's ostrich meat industry as buyers started breeding on their own and competing for markets.

However, Falepau said the chances of Angola competing with Botswana for lucrative beef markets were very slim.

'What are the chances of us building Angola's beef industry through live cattle export? Very little to none, it takes a lot of time and many stages are involved for a country's beef market to evolve to that level.'

The commission called for the supply of 650 specified breeds of cattle for live export to Angola from FMD-free zones.

'The 650 cattle would be a once off consignment to assist Angola establish a superior beef-breeding programme. This takes time and cannot be an immediate success that could pose a serious threat to a well-established beef industry like that of Botswana. The important thing for us to focus on now is controlling our cattle herd,' Falepau said.

The BMC CEO said the Department of Veterinary Services would soon apply to the European Union for resumption of exports to that market.

The EU suspended purchasing from Botswana early this year after expressing dissatisfaction with slaughter conditions in the Southern African country.

Southern Times

SADC centre for agricultural research launched in Botswana

by Angela Mdlalani

Botswana is now home to the Centre for the Coordination of Agricultural Research and Development in Southern Africa (CCARDESA), an initiative by the SADC region to tackle food security through research and innovation.

CCARDESA was established by SADC in 2010 and the ministers responsible for Agriculture and food security signed its charter in November 2010.

The centre, to be housed at the Ministry of Agriculture’s headquarters, is expected to coordinate joint regional research programmes in SADC, facilitate the sharing of research information and resources, as well as strengthen partnership and collaboration.

Botswana Gazette

Botswana vegetable farm eyes South African market

by Calistus Kolantsho


Speaking during a recent media tour, Talana Farm's General Manager, Jannie Willemse, said the farm is being operated by Botalana Ventures in partnership with Botswana Development Corporation (BDC) from which they have enjoyed massive support since they started operating and have been their partner since 2006.


Willemse said they sold 1,800 tonnes of vegetables in the Botswana market last year and aim to produce 16,000 tonnes for both the local market and for export, especially to South Africa.


"We are currently ploughing six types of vegetables and we are planning on introducing other varieties in the near future," he told the media. "We sell our vegetables in Gaborone and stock a warehouse in Selebi-Phikwe for distribution to the central and northern parts of the country. Ninety percent of our produce is sold in Gaborone."

Willemse explained that they irrigate the 380 hectares of land that they have ploughed with water from the Motloutse and Limpopo Rivers.

Talana employs 428 people made up of 50 percent Batswana and 50 percent foreigners and have 60 foreigners and 40 Batswana as casual workers. During harvest, the farm hires nearly 800, most of them locals.

"Farming in Botswana is faced with a shortage of labour because most Batswana are not interested in farming, which forces us to hire foreigners," said Willemse.

He pointed out that the farm's start-up capital was P5 million, turnover in the past year was P35 million and that they have ploughed the profit back into the farm.

They are leasing the land from the BDC. Willemse described prices in the Botswana market as stable by comparison to the South African prices. Talana Farm vegetables are of such high quality that they even beat vegetables from South Africa, he said. There will be a shortage of tomatoes and potatoes in South Africa this year due to frost that swept across the neighbouring country in winter. "Talana Farm has better weather conditions during winter," Willemse said. "Our disadvantage is the distance from the market."

In his view, Botswana's farming industry needs government protection because it is still in its infancy.

Willemse explained to the journalists that they have assisted the villages of Lentswe le Moriti, Motlhabaneng and Mathathane to start up their own vegetable gardens, through the Molema Trust and went an extra mile by assisting with marketing the produce.

BDC Board Chairperson, Simon Meti, explained that the farm is 100 percent owned by the BDC. He said the project is meant to develop the agriculture sector in the country. The farm measures 1 800 hectares, though only 388 hectares have been utilised so far.


Mmegi

South African bumper harvest depresses Botswana cereal prices

by Mbongeni Mguni

A three-million tonne surplus in maize from South Africa has resulted in a depression of prices local farmers are able to obtain for their supplies to the Botswana Agricultural Marketing Board (BAMB), it has been learnt.

According to BAMB officials, South Africa is expecting 12.96 million metric tonnes of maize this year against local demand of nine million in that country. The region's agricultural giant also has carryover stock amounting to 1.9 million tonnes, further weighing on the already surfeit market.

With BAMB benchmarking its price on the South African maize price, what is music to the ears of local consumers has become a nightmare for local farmers.

While last year, BAMB was buying maize from farmers for about P70 per 50-kilogramme bag, this year the price has dropped to P60. The surplus also extends to sorghum, with this year's prices dropping to P55 from last year's P82.50.


BAMB Public Relations Officer, Boipuso Nyatshane, says market forces are pushing cereal prices down this year, to the detriment of farmers. "The prices are very low due to the surplus from the massive harvest in South Africa," she says.
"They have a lot of produce, three million tonnes of which has been set aside for the export market. We benchmark our prices on South Africa which also benchmarks against Chicago. If South Africa has excess produce, it means prices will be low. This in turn means the prices we can offer our farmers will be low."


Defending the rationale of benchmarking against South Africa, Nyatshane says as a net importer of food and a comparatively small market, Botswana cannot afford to set its own commodity prices.


"Many times farmers will complain that our prices are low, but if we sell higher than South Africa, the millers will go there," says Nyatshane. "We have to keep our prices competitive in relation to South Africa. Farmers now know how the system and the market work."


South African farmers are receiving between R1 050 and R1 200 (between R52 and R60 per bag) a tonne of maize while the BAMB is offering farmers P1 200 per tonne of maize, or P60 per 50-kilogramme bag. "We offer this slightly better price in order to support the local industry," Nyatshane says. "We cannot afford to go too much higher though. The difference with South Africa is also transport costs, which is in a way an incentive. We are trying to support the industry."


Botswana's sorghum price of P55 per bag is also higher than South Africa which generally decides on the price by trimming five percent off the maize price.

Nyatshane points out that sorghum receives special attention in terms of pricing because BAMB is eager to support it, the cereal being the staple food for most households in Botswana. She says without the support, farmers would be discouraged from planting sorghum and focus on maize instead, thus creating shortage of the staple cereal.


Nyatshane urges farmers to liaise with BAMB in various fora in order to avoid the effects of low prices. "We always give farmers market forecasts during the pre-harvest season so that they know what to plant," she says. "Many farmers have planted maize when South Africa has a surplus and when everyone does this, prices go down. "In addition, we encourage them to sign contracts with BAMB. For example, those holding contracts with us will this year receive P85 per bag of sorghum, which is the price we agreed before planting. With contracts, if the price goes higher than agreed, we will pay you the higher price. If it goes lower, we will still pay the agreed price."


Last year, maize and sorghum farmers signed contracts worth 18 000 tonnes with BAMB, a figure that has risen to 38 000 tonnes this year. This year's figure consists of 33 000 tonnes of sorghum, with maize bringing up the balance.
BAMB purchases commodities between April and September, selling these to millers and other offtakers throughout the year.

Mmegi

Biodiesel plant planned for Botswana

Plans are underway in Botswana to construct a biofuels plant that will produce 50 million-litres of biodiesel annually. The plant, due to be online in 2012, will eventually utilise jatropha from plantations to manufacture the biodiesel but will start off using meat tallow and used cooking oil.

The National Petroleum Fund will finance the project with advanced plans already in place to purchase at least 170,000 hectares of land, according to the Ministry of Minerals, Energy and Water Resources’ Committee of Supply Report to Parliament. The land will be used to grow jatropha that will feed the refinery.

The report says that the jatropha plantations will be leased to the private sector and local farmers after they have been developed. It is hoped that the private sector will be encouraged to cultivate more plantations to meet the plant’s full processing capacity. The plant will help the coal-rich nation reduce its carbon dioxide output.

The plant, due to be online in 2012, will eventually utilise jatropha from plantations to manufacture the biodiesel but will start off using meat tallow and used cooking oil.

Biofuels International

Agricultural insurance launched in Botswana

by Brain Benza

Agriculture insurance has finally been launched for the first time in Botswana with the facilitation of the Agricultural Hub, as the sector tries to move towards full commercialisation.
Agrinsure Botswana, a joint venture effort between South Africa's Farmers Technical Insurance Services Company (FTISC) and Alexandra Forbes Botswana, was recently officially unveiled to stakeholders in the industry.

According to Agriculture Hub Coordinator, Neil Fitt, the establishment of agriculture insurance in Botswana is a major milestone in the sector as the idea for such a product has been in the pipeline for many years  and it will now  strengthen  the country's efforts to attain food sustainability.

"In the past we have only had schemes that were put in place by government and in as much as they were very helpful to the farmers, they had their own limitations as they were national programmes. With the introduction of Agrinsure, we will now have products that are farm and individual specific. This will also go a long way in assisting farmers that were in need of such products as we know that banks here are not that excited about the farming business," said Fitt.

The company will be the first to offer agricultural insurance products in Botswana covering both livestock and crops.

The Agriculture hub Coordinator says that the Agrinsure project is purely a commercial venture with no government involvement except only to sanctify the venture.

Fitt added that they were forced to go and solicit for the services of the South African company after local companies were either uninterested in agriculture insurance or inexperienced to offer the service.

CEO of Agrinsure David Garden says they are now in the process of winding up registration of the company with the licence from the Non-Banking Financial  Institutions Regulatory Authority(NBFIRA) expected soon.

Asked to comment on the chances of finding underwriters in a market where the financial institutions are not very keen on agriculture insurance, Garden said,  " we are hoping a few financial institutions will come on board but some of the business will have to be taken abroad. Alexandra Forbes will have the task of looking for the underwriters but this is still a new product in a relatively small market and I believe we are going to have to take a significant amount of the business outside the country. In South Africa most of our business comes from Standard Chartered bank and we are hoping they are going to be one of the first to do business with us here in Botswana. I understand they have already sent a representative from South Africa to look into this matter," said Garden.

Reinsurance support for the direct insurer is expected to be provided by Munich Re, the largest reinsurer in Africa while local technical support will be done by Agrinsure.

Garden further said they have crafted a number of products which will suit different farmers for both livestock and crops. "For the first time in Botswana multiperil insurance will be available for herd animals at affordable premium with the introduction of Herd Select Insurance. The Farmer can select the animals he wishes to insure if he does not want to insure his entire herd. Effecting this Insurance will also assist the farmer to obtain finance to purchase animals" he said.

Rates will be based on the number of animals insured and the self-insurance option chosen, usually 10 percent.

Garden added that the insurance is designed to protect the least valuable animals, or the entire herd where the farmer is not concerned about disease or sickness cover, with the cover options including death from fire, lightning, accident and theft.

On crops, the cover provided will be based on a guaranteed yield which is determined by the production history (potential yield) and calculated at an agreed value per tonne.

Perils that may be covered are fire, lightning, frost, excessive rain, drought including excessive heat waves, uncontrollable crop diseases and pests and transit within a 100km radius. The basis rate for this insurance is five percent.

Mmegi

Botswana to invest $1.5 billion in agriculture over next seven years

Botswana will invest 10 billion pula ($1.5 billion) in its agriculture industry over the next seven years to secure food supplies and boost farming's contribution to the economy, Agriculture Minister Christian De Graaf said.

The money will be spent on improving farm infrastructure and securing water supplies for irrigation, De Graaf said in an interview in the capital, Gaborone, today.

"The underlying principle is that we want to produce enough crops for the nation,'' he said. "We want to steer the agricultural sector, but we don't want this to be government driven.''

The contribution of agriculture to Botswana's gross domestic product has fallen from more than 80 percent when the southern African nation gained independence in 1966 to just 2 percent today. The country produces just 15 percent of its national cereal requirement, De Graaf said, and the government wants to increase this to more than 50 percent.

As much as 400,000 hectares of new or underutilized land will be brought into production between April next year and March 2016, the minister said. Subsidies will be introduced to encourage farmers to take part.

Under the plan, known as Integrated Support for Arable Agricultural Development, De Graaf said the government will also ensure water for irrigation.

One of the major water projects being undertaken is the Zambezi river project, which aims to construct a 3 billion pula ($442.5 million) pipeline from the Chobe River to the Pandamatenga district in northwestern Botswana. The pipeline will irrigate as much as 40,000 hectares of land, De Graaf said.

"Another 2 billion pula will be used on the development of infrastructure,'' he added.

Botswana wants to source 2.8 million cubic liters a year from the Chobe for the project, and is in discussions with neighboring Namibia, Zambia and Zimbabwe about securing water rights, De Graaf said.

Bloomberg

Botswana needs to increase milk production

Botswana should brace for a shortage of milk in 2010 unless the countrys dairy farming capability is scaled up.

Head of the dairy section in the Ministry of Agriculture, Mr Lebane Nthoyiwa, said Botswana still had a long way to go to achieve self sustenance in milk production.

This is in spite of the fact that the market for milk and milk by-products remains largely unexploited.

Mr Nthoyiwa says government needs to intervene to avert a crisis resulting from South Africa, the major supplier, stopping milk exports in 2010.

South Africa is expecting to host millions of tourists in 2010 because of the FIFA World Cup.

Botswana was hit by a shortage of milk last year.

Mr Nthoyiwa challenges Batswana to venture into dairy farming to fill the gap created by under supply of milk in the market.He also wants the dairy herd at a NAMPAADD farms to be increased to avert shortage.

At present, Botswana dairy farmers produce only 48 per cent of fresh milk consumed in the country while the bulk of the processed milk is imported mostly from South Africa.

Lack of infrastructure in the form of roads and electricity are some of the challenges facing dairy farmers.The fact that milk production is highly capital intensive compounds the problem.

Mr Nthoyiwa contends that a viable dairy initiative costs around P2 million ($307,000 to start. A dairy farmer, he says, needs to be focused and well equipped with management skills.

Mr Nthoyiwa expressed concern that though government undertakes initiatives to equip farmers with necessary dairy management skills, most of them preferred to delegate, which defeats the objective.

Botswana currently has 5000 dairy cows but at any given time only 33 per cent of them are producing milk instead of at least 80 per cent.

This state of affairs, he says, is very disappointing. In addition, some dairy farmers do not observe the prescribed feeding regimes and end up producing far below their potential.

While a well-fed cow is reported to be capable of producing between 50 to 60 liters of milk per day, most dairy cattle around Jwaneng produce below 10 liters a day.

Naledi based dairy farmer, Mrs Sedijame Dingalo acknowledges that most dairy farmers perceive milk production as just another farm activity, a situation which impedes the full exploitation of opportunities offered by the sub-sector.

She is one of the few farmers that are still in production despite huge challenges that range from lack of capital to poor management.

She maintains a herd of 30. Mrs Dingalo says dairy farming has been highly mechanised because of the high hygiene standards required.

She therefore decried lack of capital to produce milk on sustainable commercial scale.

Jwaneng-based dairy officer, Mr Rhemsden Ramalepa identified poor management practices, perennial droughts and poor marketing strategies as the main factors impeding the growth of dairy farming.

He called for proper feeding strategies and regular supply of fresh water. Another problem, he said, was that some farmers were reluctant to ask for loans from financial institutions.

BOPA Daily News Service

Botswana farmer chronicles the problems of market access, repaying debt

by Anonymous

I refer to your article titled 'CEDA faces Bankruptcy' (over poor loan repayments from small business and high operating costs) in your Tuesday 23rd October edition.

I am a beneficiary of CEDA (Citizen Entrepreneurial Development Agency) funding for an agricultural project and will begin servicing my loan with the first installment due at the end of November. I want to confirm the CEDA Chairman and CEO's remarks regarding the problems faced by SMEs regarding market penetration and other related problems as they have a knock on effective on CEDA beneficiaries' ability to service their loan obligations.

I am a fresh produce grower and I want to give you my experiences ...regarding the problems that emerging Batswana farmers face...

Most of the marketing problems encountered by Batswana can be laid at the doorstep of the major chain stores that operate in Botswana. Their actions and attitudes frustrate the efforts of government and Batswana farmers to wean off our over-reliance on South African produce.

...let me cite the example of tomatoes and green peppers to illustrate the untold story of the long-suffering farmer. I want to illustrate the tricks that the major chains use to justify buying from across the border (South Africa.)

The first problem encountered by a farmer is to get onto the 'list of suppliers' to the supermarket chain. This can be intimidating for the small farmer because you are told to contact 'head office'.

They may say that they cannot buy from you because you are a small farmer and are not VAT registered so they cannot claim back their VAT. This is a prelude to bring your prices down by 10 percent to cover their 'loss' on being unable to claim back VAT. This can be a legitimate excuse but in final analysis the loss is borne by the farmer. This is an area that the government needs to look at seriously.

Once you have been successful in doing this, the next hurdle is to talk to the manager of the fruit and vegetable department. The manager in most instances is a young man who has no clue of business and his own critical role as a Motswana to support the development and growth of Batswana farmers. He is usually a glorified 'manager' with very little authority. He acts as a convenient buffer between the store manager and the farmer because in all cases he reports back to the boss and the final decision rests with the store manager.

The first thing he will ask you for is the price of your produce and when you give him a quote he has been primed to automatically say 'you are too expensive and I can buy/ source this cheaper from South Africa.' You can try to reason with him that they still have to pay for transport, clearing charges and that your quality is far superior to some of the second grade produce they source from RSA markets. Also the fact that the produce from RSA is already days old before it even gets to the consumer, whereas your product is freshly picked and in addition they do not have to keep large stocks because they can buy from you on a daily basis. Forget it, this does not wash.

Eventually you are forced to reduce the price, but when you ask them if it is fair that immediately after they buy your product they price it on their shelves at (up to double the price paid the producer), they have no answer. You can see who is ripping off the public by making huge profits from our sweat and toil.

I must admit I bristle with pride when my Botswana grown and produced cucumbers or tomatoes are placed on the shelves and labelled as 'English tomatoes/ cucumbers.' It gives them that certain air of snob appeal and respectability, but let's not be fooled: that's the supermarkets excuse for selling them at a higher price!

For both green and red peppers, they refuse to pay more than Pula 5.50 ($1.00)per kilo but they immediately put my product on the shelves at P15.95 per kilo for green peppers and red peppers for up to P25.95 per kilo. Ouch.

It is an interesting fact that farmers in South Africa have worked out that basic farm producer prices have not increased in the past 10 years, yet the farmers input costs have gone up by 200 percent and the chain stores are quick to blame inflation for rising prices on their shelves!

Okay, so once you start supplying them, don't get too happy because one day they will buy, say 200 kgs, and nothing the next day, because their truck will have brought stocks from RSA and those products are on the shelves next to yours. They will dodge coming to a regular supply agreement with you despite inviting them to your farm to see proof that you have consistency of supplies for a medium to long-term commitment.

In some instances when you deliver, the fruit and vegetable 'manager' or his children are hungry and his hunger pangs need Chicken Licken or Nando's. You read what you want to into that, I will not elaborate.

The next below the belt shot is when next you bring supplies, they want to return your produce that you previously supplied to them two or three days before. They want you to exchange it for them because they only sell 'fresh' products. They will not admit to the truth that they did not refrigerate the produce as is the normal practice, hence the deterioration in quality. When you enquire if they are allowed to send back products that they buy directly from the market in South Africa, they cut you short with the threat that if you do not accept returns they will not buy from you in future.

So now you have a truck full of perishable produce waiting outside that you have to dispose of, you are being forced to take returns and you are completely at their mercy. So what do you do?

After all that, you think you are on a roll and have a regular market. Then comes another hurdle. It can take anything from 30 to 90 days to get your cheque out of them. Since you are a small farmer with a hand to mouth existence and your profit margin has been cut to threads by the power of the supermarkets, this plays havoc with your cash flow and many farmers fall into hard times because of this. So how do we survive, let alone develop to pay our debts to CEDA?

...they make a mockery of and undermine the government's efforts to encourage the expansion of the horticultural sector. Maybe it's just a hangover of the old South African mentality, because many of the chains stores franchise holders are from there. On the other hand, it is also embarrassing that the largest importer of vegetables to Botswana is a citizen-owned chain with outlets countrywide, yet they will offer you peanuts, quoting prices ruling at the Pretoria Fresh Produce Market.

I have been on many occasions to the Pretoria Vegetable Market and have seen their big trucks being loaded with fresh produce that could otherwise be obtained in Botswana. If only they committed themselves to offer fairer prices and bought a larger percentage of local produce they could change the situation overnight.

This is but a small part of the suffering of the horticultural producer in Botswana. As things stand, there will never be a viable horticultural sector in Botswana because of the very negative attitude of the chain store buyers.

We have been forced to keep quiet because we fear being black listed by these chain stores so we live in an uneasy love-hate relationship with them.

I would like to see if any of the major chain stores could respond to this letter to deny what I have written herein. It is only then that I will expose my name. But at that time I will do so by quoting the names of the supermarkets, citing individual cases and occasions where I have encountered the type of problems I have listed above.

In the meantime, I request that my name and address be withheld for fear of being sidelined and suitably 'punished' for my exposure of this state of affairs.

Mmegi-Botswana

Botswana markets loan fund to encourage young farmers

Botswana has a lot of things going for it but a strong farming sector isn't one of them. The nation is a long way from being self-sufficient when it comes to food. In 2006, local farmers produced 322,245 metric tonnes of maize, sorghum, millet and wheat, but that figure only accounted for 10 percent of the country's cereal needs.

The Citizen Entrepreneurial Development Agency, however, is trying improve those figures by making it more attractive for young Batswana to stay on the land. That is why CEDA set up a stall at the BOCCIM (Botswana Confederation of Commerce, Industry and Manpower) Northern Trade Fair in May to promote its new Young Farmers Fund. All citizens between the ages of 18 and 35, and all wholly citizen-owned companies that wish to start or expand agricultural projects, are eligible to apply for the assistance that comes mainly in the form of subsidised loans.

The maximum loan size is 500,000 Pula ($80,000) at an interest rate of 5 percent, and the money can be used for working capital, infrastructure development or both.

CEDA have decided specific training is essential for farming success so the government lending agency will require all successful applicants to take appropriate courses before the money is handed over. Monitoring and support services will also be provided.

The Voice

Dry Botswana innovatively boosts yields

Botswana's minister of agriculture is optimistic that despite harsh climatic conditions, crop yields can be significantly increased. He said under irrigated agriculture, yields have increased from about 20 tons per hectare to about 37 tons per hectare.

Johhny Swartz said, "Under rain fed farming, yields have increased from 200 kg per hectare to 270kg per hectare in communal areas and from 1 tonne per hectare to 2 tonnes per hectare in commercial areas. It has also been demonstrated that under dairy, milk yields could be increased. When we started some three years ago, the national average was about 10 litres per cow per day. Using innovative technology the production is 30 litres per cow per day."


Johnny Swartz made his view known at the planting of olive trees, a project initiative with the Israeli's Tahal Group at Glen Valley Production and Training Farm (PTF) project. He said Glen Valley PTF is one of the four that are developed by his ministry as part of the ultimate objective of making agriculture competitive, attractive and profitable.

Swartz explained that seven cultivars of olives have been planted at Glen Valley Production and Training Farm. "This represents the first ever trees grown in the country at a commercial level," he said.

Eyton Retchter, the managing director of Tahal Group said the company is active in about 20 developing countries. "When we look at a country to invest, we look at potential of that country as well as risks. Botswana has an excellent management and sound policies, making it a safe place for investors. We just started with this project and we hope to continue with other projects," he said.

allafrica.com

Drought, low producer prices cause Botswana milk shortage

Botswana is currently experiencing a serious shortage of UHT milk with most wholesalers and shops around the country having a little or none at all to sell.

Metro Sefalana Cash and Carry merchandise director Dave Wykerd said the situation is very bad and that they cannot meet the customer demand. He said they get their supply from three main supplies; Clover Botswana, Parmalat Botswana and Woodlands Dairy in South Africa. "The crisis in milk supply is bad for our business as most shops country wide buy from our outlets," he says.

Wykerd says he understood the milk producer price to be the cause of the problem because it has not changed for a long time despite the fact that inflation keeps going up. He said this has left most farmers with no option but to divert from dairy farming to currently lucrative cash crops such as wheat and maize.

As a way of trying to rectify the problem, he says his company is communicating with a supplier in Hong Kong on the feasibility of importing milk from overseas. "Our business has been affected very badly."

For his part, CA Sales National Sales Manager Charles Mika said his company gets its supply from South Africa and Zimbabwe, noting that these countries have to satisfy their markets first before exporting milk to other countries.

A recent report quotes Chief Animal Production officer in the Ministry of Agriculture Stanley Mosielele confirming that there is the likelihood of a decline in local milk production due to the prevailing drought, shortage of feeds and the resultant escalation in feed prices. Mosielele said Botswana is 50 per cent self-sufficient in fresh raw liquid milk production, adding that the output is likely to drop because most of milk producers in the southern part of the country are experiencing drought.

BOPA