The Ministry of Agriculture said the turnout for this year’s National Agriculture Show was exceptionally impressive, bearing in mind the disappointment suffered by farmers and stakeholders last year after the show was cancelled.
The Chief Agriculture Information Officer at the ministry, Boikhutso Rabasha, said they did not expect such a “positive response from our farmers and stakeholders” because “we thought they had lost confidence in us”.
“The show was cancelled on short notice (last year) after everything had been set and it inconvenienced most of our farmers and stakeholders,” she said.
Last year, the national agricultural show was not held due to the outbreak of Rift Valley Fever.
The show was held last week in Gaborone with the theme “Rethinking Agriculture: Key to Self Reliance and Economic Development.”
“We put in lot of effort this year to make sure that this year show would not be a failure to regain confidence of our farmers and stakeholders,” she said.
Rabasha said the show has a high value among local farmers as it gives them time to mingle and share the best agricultural information.
“The aim is also to showcase the abundant agricultural resources and potential of the country to consolidate the achievements of the past and promote good policies to attract local and foreign investments,” she said.
Rabasha added that this annual event enables the Ministry, farmers and stakeholders to showcase the modern agricultural practices, equipment and other things associated with arable agriculture and animal husbandry.
She said over 20 companies have sponsored different prizes for both arable and livestock sectors competition. She appreciated the overwhelming sponsorship they received from various sponsors which include Debswana, Feed Center, Banyana, and BMC, amongst other sponsors.
Exhibitors came from as far as Spain, South Africa and Namibia.
