One such intervention is the recently launched National Fodder Strategy, which was developed by the Ministry of Lands and Agriculture in partnership with the Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO), an United Nations agency. Officials said the plan seeks to transform the country's livestock industry, reduce dependence on imported animal feed, and significantly lower the national dairy import bill. Minister of Lands and Agriculture, Dr Edwin Dikoloti, noted the initiative comes at a critical time as Botswana seeks to increase agriculture's contribution to the economy and accelerate growth within the livestock industry. "We have set ourselves a target of increasing agriculture's contribution to GDP to between six and 10% over the next five years and growing the national cattle population to five million," he said at the launch last week.
According to Dikoloti, Botswana has historically relied on imported feed and natural grazing systems, leaving farmers vulnerable to drought, erratic rainfall patterns, and global supply chain disruptions. As a result, the strategy seeks to reverse this trend by promoting the local production of climate-resilient fodder crops and developing sustainable feed supply systems. It will establish resilient local supply chains for fodder crops such as lablab and lucerne while strengthening feed security across the livestock sector. Government’s projections show that demand for livestock feed is expected to increase by approximately 103% by 2030. Authorities believe the strategy will help meet this growing demand while supporting a 60% expansion of the dairy industry and reducing Botswana's dairy import bill by nearly 75%. Dikoloti explained that previous interventions, including the government's Lemang Dijo programme, have already laid the foundation for increased fodder production.
