We can all agree that Botswana’s horticultural industry has experienced changes since the advent of COVID-19, some positive, some negative. Reflecting on such events can help us to plan our farming season and to find ways in which we could improve the horticultural value chain. Almost all our producers put their focus on primary production which entails growing and selling, and there is limited knowledge, rather limited exposure of citizen owned SMME’s, companies or national projects engaging in value addition through agro-processing. So let’s point out the progress of our country’s horticultural value chain (HVC) through SWOT analysis.
Strengths
Botswana’s horticultural industry is identified as a priority area for economic diversification. It aligns with the President’s Reset Priority 4: Value- chain development and Vision 2036 Pillar 1: Sustainable Economic Development. According to Agricultural Finance Scoping FMT report, to date, Botswana produces about 60% of the nation’s demands which consists of vegetables such as tomatoes, cabbage, rape, chou moellier, potatoes, onions, beetroots and others. This shows that we are on our way of becoming self-sufficient in horticultural production. Also, the restriction of horticultural produce from South Africa has done our producers some justice by eliminating the South-African competition and shifting from small scale farming to medium scale farming, where most our local farmers are categorised. Due to the amendment in land ownership, married women can now own lands independently and because of this, to date, it is estimated that close to 50% Batswana Women possess land ownership. This will promote gender inclusive farming hence more land, increased production and this matches the Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) 5; Gender equality and SDG 8: Decent work and economic development. Let’s not forget that HVC is a source of livelihood. It brings household income as some are hired as labourers, skilled workers or farmers and this adds value to the horticultural industry.
Weaknesses
In Botswana, there is no proper pricing structure for horticultural produce. When the time comes for farmers to sell their produce to retail stores, some get their value and end up experiencing losses. This is why it is important to set out a standard pricing structure for vegetables at retail price and wholesale prices. Horticultural produce are perishables, they tend to waste away because our farmers are not well equipped with post-harvest technologies and preservation techniques. It is the responsibility of the farmer to find out ways on how they can add value to their produce so that they can make extra income from the products. I have observed that in our country, there is no proper crop planning calendar for horticultural crops. Farmers who are new to the industry, tend to plant the quick cash crops like bell peppers and tomatoes not knowing whether it’s their season or not. This disrupts the crop calendar system which is in tune with the climatic and environmental conditions and will lead to uncontrollable sporadic outbreaks of pests and diseases.
Opportunities
Because of the Economic Inclusion Bill 2021, there is so much that Batswana can explore in the horticultural value chain particularly in agro-processing. There are SMME’s who produce Marula Jam and Sweets, Lerotse Jam, Ginger beer, Pickled Artchar and other canned products. The Special Economic Zones Authority (SEZA) has set up Special Economic Zone Sites throughout Botswana which focuses on different areas of production. Pandamatenga focuses on integrated agriculture and agro-processing; Tuli Block focuses on horticulture, Gaborone (SSKIA) Selibe-Phikwe are into agro-processing. This value chain addition will indeed diversify the economy. Farmers have requested the government to completely ban the importation of horticultural produce from South-Africa and the only condition that can happen is when we are able to produce different varieties of vegetables such as patty pans, aubergines, mushrooms, baby marrows and baby spinach; the vegetables we view as luxury. This crop diversity is definitely a value addition and promote economic diversification.
Threats
Good soils and Irrigation is a must for horticulture and the water quality and quantity in Botswana is not up to par. This is why large scale horticultural farms are located in the eastern part of Botswana were there are good soils and good water quality. Most of the medium scale farms are located in the urban and per-urban regions of Botswana where there is presence of underground water or safe treated waste water which is in the Central district, South-east, North east and parts of Southern district. The vast majority of our country is desert-like and not sufficient to support crop life. This brings us to the issue of experiencing harsh climate change effects which are detrimental to plant growth. The frequent outbreak of pests and diseases coupled with failure to control them is a threat to HVC. These threats will slow down the value chain and negatively affects economic growth.
With that said, we come from way far and it is our responsibility to push our country forward. We must continue with building Botswana’s horticultural value chain because agriculture as a tool we can use to diversify our economy.
