Chief Executive Officer Mmasekgoa Masire-Mwamba said that BEDIA had a piece of land allocated to it at Gerald Estates but ended up backing off because it was not serviced. She said that Francistown is on the verge of unprecedented economic growth because of an upsurge in mining activities.
"We were very excited about developing the land but we could not because the land was not serviced," she said.
Councillor Sam Masunga said even if businesses had an opportunity to expand, lack of serviced land was a hindrance. He added that BEDIA is one of the organisations whose progress has been retarded by lack of serviced land in the area. He suggested that that when undertaking such tours BEDIA should take the mayor and his officers on board so they could see what is happening.
Northern Textiles Mills (Nortex) director Mokesh Josh said that businesses in Francistown are stalling because of the land issue.
"Francistown has land but the problem is that it is not serviced and this affects businesses and growth," he said.
For his part, Elphas Zulu, of the Department of Lands, said that it was indisputable that there was a shortage of serviced land in Francistown.
"We are basically counting on land that people have failed to develop and we repossess," he said.
He also assured the stakeholders that the land at Gerald "is in the process of being serviced".
"Three hundred and thirty-five (335) plots will be available shortly," he said. He said that according to the 1997-2010 physical development plan, at least 816 plots would be available.
Zulu advised people to develop plots or risk repossession. Zulu explained that government could repossess land if the allotted party delays to develop it as promised.
"But if the government was supposed to service the land then it cannot be repossessed," he said.
