Africa-Press – Botswana. The Selebi-Phikwe Citrus project is expected to export its first harvest to the European Union (EU) markets starting next month.
This was revealed by Assistant Minister of Trade and Industry, Ms Beauty Manake in an interview on Wednesday.
Ms Manake said currently, a total of 800 hectares of land had been ploughed and the expected harvest included among others, lemons, oranges, grape fruits and naartjies.
The first harvest will be done next month.
She said all necessary logistics and arrangements in relation to the exportation process had been concluded.
She said besides the EU market, another target market was the United States among other international countries.
“I am hopeful that the harvest will be done timely and reach the intended market.
This will be the first of its kind and will be of significant benefit to the country.
A large portion will be exported to EU and the remaining will be sold locally and to other African countries,” she added.
Ms Manake also said the project was a milestone achievement towards economic diversification, new viable opportunities for farmers and entrepreneurs, which would in turn boost the overall economic growth of the country.
She said it was imperative for small scale business operators to take advantage of the newly introduced Chema-Chema intiative to grow their businesses as well as profit-making.
“There is a lot to benefit from this project, manufacturing of citrus products such as jam is one of the low hanging fruits that small scale entrepreneurs could benefit from, hence the need to make use of Chema-Chema because startup capital can be a challenge,” she said.
Ms Manake said production of citrus fruits locally had significantly contributed to food security and sufficiency.
“It has also enhanced nutrition from local produce and this is also a step towards reducing the import bill that the country has battled with over the years,” she said.
Furthermore, the assistant minister said the project would also assist in efforts to address unemployment and would also promote skills transfer.
Ms Manake said prior to the harvest, there would be an exhibition intended to equip farmers and entrepreneurs with modes to engage in order to grow their project.
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