Botswana enters hemp industrialisation
Nnasaretha Kgamanyane | Monday May 5, 2025 06:00
Speaking at the launch of activations for the Botswana Hemp Impact Conference (BHIC) 2025 themed Discover the Future of Hemp in Gaborone recently, Kennedy explained that historically, entire communities had been left behind in new economic sectors simply due to lack of exposure. She however, emphasised that as Botswana enters the space of hemp and cannabis industrialisation, they are determined not to repeat that mistake.
“The IETD and its partners call on the media to play a critical role in ensuring that reliable, relevant, and timely information reaches every corner of the country. We believe that with widespread awareness, citizens across rural and urban Botswana particularly youth and women can be empowered not just to participate, but also to innovate. We see hemp and cannabis not as elite industries, but as opportunities to democratize access to knowledge, to create decent jobs, and to build inclusive value chains that serve the future of all Batswana,' she said.
Furthermore, she explained that the launch of the activations for the Botswana Hemp Impact Conference 2025 is a landmark initiative designed to ignite conversation, inspire action, and build readiness around one of the most promising industries of our time: industrial hemp. She added that it marked the start of a national movement that ensured that Batswana, especially the youth and women, were not only included in the policy and investment discussions surrounding hemp, but were positioned as leaders and beneficiaries in that emerging economy.
Additionally, she pointed out that the launched served to: publicly unveil the strategic roadmap toward BHIC 2025; confirm their key collaborators, including BW JOBS 4 Graduates, BOLESWA Youth Cooperatives, and Botswana; cooperatives where each will be receiving 15% of conference proceeds to implement pilot projects post-training; introduce their technical partner, Cheeba Africa, and their official travel logistics partner, Africa Lora Travel and lastly emphasise the urgency of aligning policy readiness with industry preparedness, especially as Botswana enters a historic phase of cannabis and hemp regulation.
“Scheduled for August 27–28, 2025, the Botswana Hemp Impact Conference aims to: facilitate multi-sectoral dialogue between policymakers, researchers, investors, entrepreneurs, and community actors; showcase research, innovation, and international best practices from Africa and beyond; equip and empower Botswana’s workforce with future-ready skills for the hemp value chain; stimulate investment, entrepreneurship, and industrialization around hemp-based technologies and also drive national conversations around regulatory and economic transformation. This conference is more than an event, it is the beginning of a job creation revolution,” Kennedy stated.
Moreover, she pointed out that hemp presented an opportunity to create dignified, sustainable employment, particularly in engineering, agriculture, construction, manufacturing, mining rehabilitation, pharmaceuticals, and climate-smart innovations. She emphasised that it was their duty to ensure that those opportunities were inclusive, equitable, and accessible to all Batswana.
Sub-themes to be explored at the upcoming conference include the following; Hemp as a Sustainable Resource – Unlocking its value in agriculture, textiles, food, and energy; Hemp and Engineering – Leveraging bio-based materials for construction and automotive innovation; Hemp in Mining Rehabilitation – Restoring degraded land using phytoremediation techniques; Hemp, Oil & Gas – Replacing synthetic inputs with hemp-derived alternatives; The Business of Hemp – Building thriving markets and export-ready industries and others.
Kennedy also pointed out that Botswana was no longer asking if hemp should be part of their economic future adding that the government published a clear policy on the licit use of cannabis, adding that they were inspired by the bold vision it presented from job creation to environmental healing. However, she said as they awaited regulatory finalization and institutional rollouts, that conference would bridge the policy-practice gap, by ensuring that their people were prepared, their institutions were informed, and their economy was diversified.
As Botswana stands on the brink of policy reform, Kennedy said the launch signals their readiness to bridge the policy-practice gap. She said they could not do it alone and therefore called upon key government ministries to play different roles in ensuring that the policy favours all. She also extended that call to development partners to join hands in capacity building and innovation, parastatals and private companies to invest and align their value chains with hemp opportunities and local governments and municipalities to champion implementation at community level.
“Let us all rally behind this initiative, not as spectators, but as strategic partners in shaping a diversified, inclusive, and future-ready economy. To all our partners and supporters: thank you for being part of this historic journey. Let this launch be more than a moment, let it be a movement,” she concluded.