Africa-Press – Lesotho. STORM Mountain Diamond Mine last Friday donated 43 rams and 86 ewes to farmers in Kao as part of its corporate social responsibility. Twenty-four of the ewes already had lambs while the rest were pregnant.
The beneficiaries were 43 farmers from Kao, an area where the company is mining diamonds. The handover was part of the compensation to villagers directly affected by Kao Diamond mining operations.
The handover was part of the compensation to villagers directly affected by Kao Diamond mining operations. Speaking at the handover ceremony, the company’s CEO Mohale Ralikariki said this was the second time they have offered rams to the community of Kao.
“Some of the ewes will soon give birth,” Ralikariki said. Ralikariki said they gave farmers about 30 rams last year.
“However, there is no report from the community on how the rams are faring,” he said. Ralikariki said they decided that they would give the rams to the community every year.
He said the programme will only continue if there is progress in how the farmers are handling the given livestock to improve their livelihood. “It is through the community that we will come and give more,” he said.
Ralikariki urged the community to take good care of the rams to improve the quality of their sheep stock and produce good quality wool. Ralikariki said they will seek a report about the amount of wool and mohair collected in the community each and every year to evaluate progress.
The Kao Community Alliance Officer, Tšeliso Ratiea, urged the community to protect the livestock so that they can make a living out of them. He said farmers who will be receiving the livestock should further help those who have not been given any.
Moitahli Khemi, on behalf of the director of the Wool and Mohair Promotion Project (WAMPP), said in 2019 they established the sheep breeding programme.
He said the aim of the programme was to help farmers improve the quality of their livestock. Khemi said they have been helping farmers have access to high-quality rams.
However, this time it is a blessing that farmers are being given the rams. Khemi said their expectation from the community is to produce high-quality wool and mohair.
He said it is expected that they should fight to produce better quality wool and mohair. The President of the Lesotho Wool and Mohair Growers’ Association, Mokoenehi Thinyane, said the initiative is meant to help Basotho crawl out of poverty.
However, it will only benefit those who are smart, he said. Thinyane said the community of Kao cannot even justify the fact that the rams they received last year were all eaten by predators such as jackals.
“This shows that you don’t take good care of these animals,” Thinyane said. Thinyane said the sheep should all be sheared in the shearing centre and not in illegal places that do not bring any benefit to Basotho.
He further said the law has to be enforced on people who are selling wool and mohair illegally. The MP for Motete constituency, Teboho Mojapela, said he wishes that farmers who received the rams could also give to others as the livestock continues to multiply. He said the mine had to consider other developments as well.
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