Agriculture must be top priority - Stanbic Bank CEO

MARANYANE NGWANAAMOTHO
Staff Writer | Thursday August 30, 2012 00:00

He said this when he officially opened the ongoing National agricultural show in Gaborone yesterday. 'The mining sector has a finite life, is devastating on the land and reduces its agricultural potential whilst agriculture has been with mankind, and will be with man for as long as man exists and also importantly has better potential of preserving the land,' he said.

Gabaraane said the agricultural sector's biggest challenge is that its forced to compete for resources with mining.He said although mining is the backbone of many countries' economy, agriculture should not be overlooked.

He observed that since government does not prioritise agriculture, the sector's contribution towards the country's gross domestic product has continued to deteriorate from its strong position of 40 percent at independence, to only 2 percent today. The decline is not only constrained to Botswana but cuts across the African continent. He said that given the two sectors profitable nature and some strong similarities, these two should co-exist.

'They both have high potential of being major employers and help alleviate our challenges of high unemployment. They both have the potential of diversifying a country's economic base and they are both hungry for land,' he said.

Gabaraane also noted that some farmers' attitude towards their industry is disturbing as they do not show commitment. He emphasized that farmers should chug from subsistence to commercial farming, if they are to see marked growth in the sector.  'The problem is that with subsistence farming is that we will not be in a position to determine our operational costs nor be in a position to establish accurate amounts for returns from the ventures,' he said.

'Inability to realise optimal returns from any venture means one will not appropriately commit their resources and energy towards ensuring that they fully optimise the returns from the resource,' he explained. Gabaraane condemned the farmers 'weak' voice, urging them to unite into a force that will urge the government to implement favorable policies to develop the sector. 

The national agricultural show commenced on Monday and is expected to come to an end on Saturday. It is a platform for farmers, extension officers and stakeholders to interact and share ideas on how to grow the agric sector. Products on display are for competition and for sale.