Billions invested, but agriculture still struggles
Pauline Dikuelo | Monday July 6, 2026 06:00
The concern emerged during the Botswana Agriculture Financing Strategy Consultation Workshop held here last week, where the Minister of Lands and Agriculture, Edwin Dikoloti, acknowledged that years of subsidies, grants, infrastructure projects, mechanisation programmes, livestock support schemes and drought relief initiatives have not translated into the productivity gains needed to transform the sector.
The admission comes as Botswana develops its first-ever National Agriculture Financing Strategy, a framework intended to address long-standing weaknesses in the way agriculture is financed and supported.
For many years, agriculture has been regarded as a strategic sector capable of strengthening food security, creating employment opportunities and contributing to economic diversification. Successive governments have therefore committed significant financial resources towards improving agricultural production and supporting farmers across the country.
However, despite these investments, production levels have remained relatively modest, productivity growth has been limited and the sector's contribution to the national economy has continued to decline.
The Minister told stakeholders that while government's commitment to agriculture has never been in doubt, the effectiveness of the support provided must now be critically examined.
'There comes a point in every nation's development journey when difficult truths must be acknowledged. “One of those truths, is that while Botswana has consistently invested in agriculture, it has not always financed the sector in a manner that promotes growth, innovation, competitiveness and long-term sustainability,' he told farmers.
Dikoloti acknowledged that the country has spent years introducing new programmes, restructuring existing initiatives and expanding support mechanisms. However, the expected transformation has largely failed to materialise.
'The truth is we have invested. We have subsidised. We have built infrastructure. We have introduced programme after programme. The issue is whether those investments have consistently translated into production, productivity and profitability. “Looking at where we stand today, the answer is no,' he said.
At the centre of the criticism is the argument that agricultural support policies have traditionally focused on financing inputs rather than rewarding outputs and performance.
According to Dikoloti, financing systems have largely concentrated on providing equipment, subsidies and operational support without placing equal emphasis on productivity, market access, profitability and value addition.
He argued that this approach has resulted in a system where success is often measured by the amount of money spent rather than the impact generated.
'We have financed activities rather than value chains. We have measured expenditure rather than impact. Substantial public resources have been invested over many years without producing the transformational outcomes required to build a competitive and commercially viable agricultural sector,' Dikoloti said.
The workshop further highlighted that agriculture continues to face persistent challenges, including limited access to finance, climate-related risks, low levels of private sector investment and weak integration across agricultural value chains.
These challenges have contributed to Botswana's continued dependence on food imports despite years of public investment aimed at boosting domestic production.
Dikoloti’s comments echo observations made by the Bank of Botswana recently on the efficacy of government support programmes, particularly in agriculture. Deputy governor, Kealeboga Masalila, said government was investing heavily in subsidies and interventions which did not produce the desired results.
“Look at agriculture. Government invests billions in expenditure to support a lot of programmes, but where is the yield? Who really is to blame here? “We need to have honest conversations about our productivity as a country,” he told a recent economic briefing.
Masalila said while many farmers were complaining that input subsidies had been narrowed in the past year, the results from the programmes were not impressive.
“People right now are complaining about being given inputs for a hectare in the past ploughing season, but the truth is the government is financially incapable of even providing that hectare input supply. “We need to be honest with ourselves. How much was the input generated when the government was providing support for over 10 hectares?”
He added: “We need to question our productivity as a country. We have failed to turn government support into tangible output that leads to self-sufficiency. Our discussions with government recently have centred on uncomfortable truths about what government can and cannot do.”
The problem, according to Masalila, extends beyond trade flows and into household behaviour. The failure of economic agents to convert grants and funding schemes into tangible economic solutions is an example of the rot. In sectors like agriculture, the government has spent billions supporting farmers through subsidies, infrastructure programmes, drought relief interventions and agricultural support schemes. Yet Botswana continues to import substantial volumes of food products that could potentially be produced domestically.
Recognising these shortcomings in agriculture, government is now pursuing a different approach through the development of the National Agriculture Financing Strategy.
Developed with technical and financial support from the Food and Agriculture Organisation of the United Nations (FAO), the strategy seeks to establish a financing ecosystem capable of attracting private capital, reducing investment risks and supporting innovation across the agricultural sector.
The proposed framework encourages a shift from input-based subsidies towards productivity-driven financing systems that reward results and strengthen competitiveness.
It also promotes blended finance mechanisms, climate financing solutions, risk-sharing arrangements and greater participation by commercial banks, investors and development finance institutions.
Government believes that transforming agriculture will require more than public expenditure. Instead, it will depend on stronger collaboration between government, financial institutions, investors, development partners, researchers and farmers.
The strategy aims to move agriculture from subsistence production to commercialisation, from fragmented interventions to integrated value chains, and from dependence on government support to a more competitive and investment-ready sector.