Botswana has big plans for its agricultural sector, with various strategies in place to boost interest and attract investment.According to Donald Mokgwe, principal agricultural economist in the Department of Agribusiness Promotions for the Ministry of Agricultural Development and Food Security in Botswana, agriculture has been identified as one of the strategic sectors for economic diversification.“Primary production of agriculture takes place in the rural areas of Botswana, and by investing in this sector we will be creating much-needed jobs in the country,” he said, indicating that Covid-19 had hit the country hard. “The government is, however, not just focusing on the production of agriculture commodities, but also concentrating on value addition.”Calling on companies involved in agri-processing and value addition to submit proposals to the government, Mokgwe said a supportive policy environment had been developed for the sector.Speaking during a recent webinar, Mokgwe indicated that several tax incentives were in place to boost interest in agriculture, while there was also VAT exemption on some agricultural implements.“As part of the economic recovery transformation plan to recover the country from the after-effects of the pandemic, the government budgeted several million. One of the programmes that came out of this initiative was the impact accelerator subsidy programme for horticultural farmers,” said Mokgwe. “Through this programme farmers are given a 50% grant and 50% loan. The goal has been to resuscitate the horticulture industry in the country. Money has also been set aside to assist with infrastructure development in the sector, including the upgrading of livestock facilities, horticulture nurseries and abattoirs, as well as the Mmadinare fish hat cher y.”According to Mokgwe, the government is also currently reviewing the subsidy programme for the agricultural sector to ensure they become relevant and have an impact.Omphitlhetse Bobo Senosi, director at the Botswana Investment and Trade Centre (BITC), said the country was devising national strategies to effectively link its priority sectors with regional value chains. “We consider ourselves land-linked rather than landlocked, with very sound road network infrastructure linking us with the entire southern Africa. The Kazangula Bridge that serves as an one-stop border post only enhances our reputation as a transport corridor, while we have four international airports that connect us to international markets.”According to Senosi, eight special economic zones are being developed to chart economic growth. These also assist in the strategy to drive the agricultural sector. This includes a meat and leather SEZ in Lobatsi where a tannery will be set up, a horticulture SEZ in the northeast of the country, and another SEZ in the north of the country focused on agriculture where 40 000 hectares have been identified as a site for planting. “This designated site is ideal to boost our agricultural efforts as we can irrigate it from the Zambezi,” said Senosi.He added that opportunities existed in grain farming, the poultry sector, horticulture, small stock and fruit tree production.“Aquaculture is still at its infancy stage, but it is an undeveloped value chain that we believe has much potential as well.”
