Africa-Press – Botswana. Government is working hard to revitalise the agricultural sector, which has experienced a sharp decline since independence in 1966.
Addressing residents of Tonota constituency on July 3, President Advocate Duma Boko decried the dwindling cattle herd, which had declined from three million to just over a million currently.
Past efforts to intervene and turn things around, he stated, had not improved the situation.
He also said Botswana continued to have a high import bill for food, something he explained would come to an end soon, due to government’s full-scale approach to both pastoral and arable agriculture.
“We currently have sent a team to Belarus on a bench-making exercise on agriculture because we want Batswana to not only farm on a subsistence basis but to look beyond the confines of their country and into the 1.5 billion African market for their produce. We have to incorporate technology into our farming to scale production,” he assured the residents.
The re-establishment of a fully-fledged farmers’ market, which had proven a boon to well-off countries like Norway, he said was another idea the government wanted to undertake soon.
President Boko promised that with his leadership, days of losses at the Botswana Meat Commission and the Botswana Agricultural Marketing Board were over because ‘it will not be business at usual’ at some of the State-Owned Enterprises.
He further told the residents that government had been devising strategies to revamp the economy, which had relied on diamonds for years.
“One of the many ways we have approached was to market diamond sales that have plummeted, especially during the last five years, and this campaign has taken us further afield to countries such as the United States of America,” he said.
The President said the campaign, particularly for Botswana’s natural diamond, was successful and that markets had started to show signs of recovery, which would have a trickle-down effect on the national fiscus in the long run.
“The stark reality of the lack of employment opportunities for young and educated Batswana, combined with the dire economic outlook, meant the country will have to belt-tighten and prioritise development projects once the economy recovered,” he said.
Batswana, he said, should not lose hope as government was working round the clock to ensure that all shelved projects would, at some point, see the light of day.
“We are in agreement that you need developments such as schools, clinics, hospitals and many other amenities and we are working very hard to ensure that you get all these developments that are in line with human rights and dignified livelihoods,” he said. On other issues, President Boko hinted at the establishment of the Constitutional Court, a high court specialising in constitutional law and charged primarily with reviewing legislation and other governmental actions to ensure they aligned with the supreme law of the land.
The establishment of the Constitutional Court, he said would be part of the comprehensive constitutional review that the Umbrella for Democratic Change-led government had pledged to undertake during its 2024 elections campaign.
Meanwhile, President Boko has called on Batswana to exercise restraint to curb high incidents of killings, especially when mediating between partners.
Those who mediate on such matters, he said, should never be deemed to take sides.
“A re letlanyeng re sidile maikutlo, re itshwarelaneng Batswana betsho e bile mo gongwe re amogeleng gore tirisanyo ya batho ba babedi e kgona go seke e bereka mme re amogele seemo re gatele pele,” he appealed.
Earlier, Kgosi Bokamoso Radipitse commended President Boko for his leadership style ever since he took over the Presidency last year.
“Your leadership has inspired even us leaders to re-look at how we carry ourselves among our subjects to inspire those we lead so that we may forge ahead as a unit,” he said, calling on him to continue to lead without fear or favour.
Tonota Umbrella Village Development Committee chairperson, Mr Gabotwesepe Keletso, expressed happiness over the ongoing projects, including the tarring of the Mmandunyane-Mathangwane road, the installation of SmartBots facilities in 13 of the 15 villages in the Tonota constituency, the reticulation of water in Mathangwane and the dualing of A3 road, among others.
He was, however, of the view that Tonota was in dire need of a fire station and comprehensive infrastructure, including the installation of a sewage system commensurate with its development status.
Dilapidated school facilities across the constituency, he added, needed a facelift.
One of the residents, Mr Shaun Kgokong, challenged Ngwato Land Board to up its game to ensure speedy allocation of residential plots so that the people of the Tonota constituency could benefit from the Bonno Housing Scheme.
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