QUESTION TIME

PATRICK VAN RENSBURG | Friday August 3, 2007 00:00

Although drought was a serious negative factor for anyone seriously contemplating farming in the 1960s and 1970s, there were other factors that had their own influence on the decisions of young learners about their futures.

To some extent, the policies of the Protectorate Administration in the 1960s, and later were aimed at securing successful school leavers into being officials of first, the Department of Agriculture, and after independence, of the Ministry. Agricultural demonstrators represented the lower ranks of the Department and later the Ministry, and did not necessary need 'O' levels.

 What students were interested in were such posts in any of the new Ministry, rather than being farmers themselves.

 The Ministry of Agriculture was concerned with arable, agriculture, livestock production, and to a lesser extent aspects of forestry.

Then, as now to a lesser extent, cattle posts and lands were separated, and cattle-owning men took care of their grazing animals; goats went wherever they could to find whatever they could munch. Now, the bigger owners have ranches, especially in the West.

A few women were cattle owners in their own rights as unmarried inheritors, or widows and they may have engaged Basarwa herds if they owned enough animals. Most young owners had such herds anyway, and still do.

Women living in rural areas often spent much time at their lands. Their husbands or sons took care of the ploughing. This was where their demonstrators played their parts or - should have, dependent on their superiors in offices in the larger villages.

In the years I refer to above, there were very few industries and business, Diamonds of course had its own... changes, but not before coal and copper nickel had had their influences. Government itself expanded on a large scale.

Industry has proliferated, as well as mining, and most school leavers found jobs.
Our population has increased from about 750 000 in the late 1960s to plus two million now. As a result, not all school leavers find jobs. Not even those who pass 'O' levels, including some who became graduates, find work.

I suspect that Government is planning for some of such various unemployed successful school leavers, to train as farmers, and has made it possible for them to get loans from the state - owned and controlled lenders.

If this initiative is to be successful, it must also take into account training of farmers.
For a long time, Agriculture was taught in primary schools, mainly as gardening, although there was some effort to educate students about livestock and its successful raising.
In setting up Swaneng Hill School forty years ago, I very quickly came to the conclusion that all the subjects we taught should be handled with a theoretical introduction, backed up with practice.

We had a school farm with vegetable gardens, grazing for a couple of cows (that were served by a hired bull), crops for the cattle, and imported milk goats. We also had good quality poultry for eggs and meat.

In addition, we established a plantation for afforestation in the large school grounds and beyond.

 I had established the first Brigades in 1965, for builders, which operated sufficiently, successfully to extend into other fields of productive training.

The success of the school farm, and the initial success of the Builders Brigades led us to diversification of the Brigades. These were copied elsewhere in Botswana and were appreciated by communities, because they not only educated and trained their youth, but provided them with valuable inexpensive goods and services that were not available except by... from South Africa.

I refer to this history because the Farmers' Brigades still exists near Swaneng Hill. While it is not as well run with production of beef, vegetables and tree seedlings, as before it could be given a new life.

The Officials of DVET never showed interest in the Farmers Brigade - which may have been a good thing, considering DVET's mixed past. The Ministry of Agriculture had shown some interest, but there is no doubt that a well-run Farmers Brigade could be the right way to prepare young people for owning and managing farms for different branches of agriculture.

I understand that in the middle of this month, a Farmers Brigade commemoration will be held in Serowe. It might be useful for the Ministry of Agriculture to send people there.
I am told by the organisers that any of us who knew the young men of the time would be impressed by their sophistication.