Africa-Press – Botswana. Botswana Agricultural Marketing Board (BAMB) and Phuduhudu Farming Cluster have forged a reciprocal partnership that intends to boost production of grains. Under Memorandum of Understanding (MoU), BAMB has committed to purchasing grains from the cluster, while the Phuduhudu Farming Cluster aims to increase its output to meet BAMB’s demands.
During the MoU signing ceremony on Friday, BAMB acting chief executive officer Ms Ruth Seipone stated that the partnership aligned with President Advocate Duma Boko’s vision for state enterprises like BAMB to actively support their clients or serve their mandate. Ms Seipone expressed hope that the collaboration would elevate agriculture to new heights or transform the sector altogether. She mentioned that the partnership would lead to increased production and quality, create job opportunities, and improve food security.
She noted that BAMB not only promised to purchase grains from the Phuduhudu Farming Cluster at good prices, but would also ‘hand hold them’ throughout the planting process. Additionally, she said BAMB would help farmers enhance the quality of the production by capacitating them. Ms Seipone said youth involvement in agriculture was important and she called for the utilisation of irrigation systems. Chairperson of Phuduhudu Farming Cluster, Mr Michael Gaorutlwe said the collaboration would benefit their cluster, which covered 5 800 hectares.
A commercial farmer from Phuduhudu cluster, Mr Temo Nthatang also expressed optimism about the partnership, but said it was ideal for the farm to operate at full capacity for the partnership to bear fruit. He said water and electricity supply as well as telecommunications infrastructure were a must for the farm. Furthermore, he noted that agricultural demonstrators were located over 100 km away, making access difficult for farmers. He mentioned that the cluster consisted of subsistence, medium and commercial farmers.
Letlhakeng District agriculture coordinator, Mr Thomas Tadubana said Phuduhudu was one of the strongest agricultural clusters in the area, noting the presence of commercial farmers. Mr Tadubana emphasised that by collaborating as a team, they could advance further and serve as a model farm to enhance agriculture in the region. He encouraged them to utilise supplementary irrigation and take advantage of government irrigation programmes to boost productivity per hectare.
He highlighted the importance of productivity and urged them to adopt new and advanced farming technologies. Mr Tadubana expressed concern that some land within the cluster remained unused and suggested that this idle land should be repossessed and allocated to capable farmers.
In his closing remarks, Letlhakeng Deputy District Commissioner, Mr Benjamin Lesitaokana acknowledged the support from BAMB, aligning it with the president’s recent commitment to resuscitate government owned entities so that they benefit the community. He informed Phuduhudu farmers that their land was sufficient to contribute to food security, create job opportunities and generate wealth.
For More News And Analysis About Botswana Follow Africa-Press
