Matsitama villagers conserve natural resources

Pini Bothoko | Tuesday January 19, 2016 14:31

This idea is the brainchild of the youthful village councillor Moipidi Molobeng who told Mmegi that there was a need for the village to benefit from its natural resources.

Phillip Makale, the chairperson of the committee, said in an interview that the idea was for the natural resources found in Matsitama to be harvested and used for the benefit of the village.

He said Matsitama was rich in natural resources such as wild berries and wild fruits, phane and trees, and they must be sustainable. “Some people come as far as Francistown, Selebi-Phikwe and other areas located far from us to harvest phane, mogwana or to collect firewood for business purposes hence benefitting more than residents,” he said. “The idea is for the harvest of such natural resources to be monitored by the village leadership.”

At present, everyone harvests as much as they like without permission from village leaders.

Makale said every season, multitudes of people flock to the area and camp on the outskirts of Matsitama for weeks, or even months, to harvest the natural resources. Such camping often results in pollution of the environment.

“There are some areas that used to be rich in natural resources because such resources were not regulated, some of them are no longer found in those areas,” he added.

“We want people to collect or harvest natural resources, allowing them space to reproduce not to eliminate their reproduction cycle.”

He also said the idea was for the committee to regulate and monitor that natural resources in their village are used correctly for them to last and benefit the next generation.

“We do not restrict Batswana to visit our village to harvest natural resources but rather we want things to be done accordingly,” he said. “We are planning that all those who want to visit us here to harvest phane, mogwana or firewood to ask for permission from the kgotla and pay P1.00 for permission to harvest.

That money will then be used for the village developments.” Makale said that they are planning to engage the Village Development Committee (VDC) to consider renting out toilets to people who will be camping in their village collecting phane, mogwana or any other natural resources. “We have realised that visitors pollute the environment whilst in camps something that is a health hazard to our livestock and other natural resources,” he said.

Makale said he and other village leaders wanted Matsitama to benefit from its natural resources.

He noted that Thakadu mine, that was closed last year, did not benefit the residents, hence the move to harvest the village’s natural wealth. Kgosi Reuben Ketlhobogile applauded the village elders for this idea, saying natural resources should benefit the village.