Zim yet to settle Botswana live cattle debt
Goitsemodimo Kaelo | Friday July 31, 2020 14:32
The amount is for the live cattle Zimbabwe bought from the Foot and Mouth zone back in 2012.
The ministry, through Botswana Meat Commission (BMC), had entered into an agreement with a Zimbabwean company, Cold Storage Company (CSC) for the sale of live cattle in 2012 from Zone six.
However, more than eight years later, the Zimbabwean government is yet to settle the debt.
Permanent Secretary at the Ministry of Agriculture and Food Production ,Jimmy Opelo told the Public Accounts Committee (PAC) that it has proven difficult to recoup the money.
Opelo said after several failed engagements with the company, they were forced to engage the Ministry of Foreign Affairs because of existing diplomatic arrangements between the two countries.
“I think the matter with this case is like this, the matter has been back and forth. There was a company owned by Zimbabwean government. A dispensation was made at that time and altogether if I recall, there is an amount of P54 million that was paid against an original amount of P55 million point some figures in there. When we realised we were not going anywhere, we did engage the company, and the Foreign affairs,” he said.
According to Opelo, they had initially decided not to push hard on the matter because arrangements had been made that the business over the sale of live cattle would continue.
He said political changes in Zimbabwe had also made it even more difficult to recoup the outstanding balance.
“Another issue is that there has been some changes in Zimbabwe. For instance, former minister of Agriculture has had a meeting with former minister of agriculture in Zimbabwe and the issue discussed at diplomatic level but we have not been able to manage to recoup the money,” he said.
The Ministry’s Finance Manager, Ponatshego Moemela added that they have written to Botswana in Zimbabwe but have been told, “we are striking on an animal that is not going to move”.
PAC Special Advisor and Member of Parliament for Jwaneng/Mabutsane Mephato Reatile said it was worrying that the ministry is failing to recoup the money. He said the failure to conduct such businesses has affected the country’s potential to find markets for its cattle in neighbouring countries.
Meanwhile, PAC also expressed disappointment at the declining national herd, saying it’s a result of the Ministry’s failure to liberalise the beef industry. It is said that the national herd has declined from around 3 million to 1.4 million.