Like all Batswana, farmers are facing higher fuel prices at the pump, as well as at the farm –– prices of production inputs are also going up.
The situation is so dire that the horticulture council has cautioned that any further hike would force farmers to increase prices of their produce.
Botswana horticulture council spokesperson Solomon Tshenyo says it has continuously become expensive for farmers to cushion expenses related to production such as transportation of produce.
Tshenyo says the farmers had hoped that the government will devise strategies to cushion farmers in order to increase production and make the country self-sufficient.
“We have tried to lobby government over the last few months to engage retailers to accede to our price reviews because retailers have a tendency of refusing to buy at our price yet they themselves continuously increase their retail price,” says Tshenyo in an interview with this author.
He adds that farmers are well aware that fuel prices are likely to go up again before end of the year hence the call for government to, “atleast come up with alternative ways to ensure that the horticulture sector does not collapse,”
“We want government to assist in anyway they can because even sourcing out loans from commercial banks is a challenge yet we are expected to produce,”
As an alternative, Tshenyo says the government should issue a clear directive that will allow farmers to also sell their produce to public schools.
Food self-sufficiency still a pie on the sky….
While in December 2021 the Botswana government imposed a long term restriction on importation of some selected vegetable commodities, the intended outcome of the move is likely to be impacted by the recent skyrocketing fuel prices amongst other things.
In a bid to boost local producers, the government restricted the importation of horticulture produce such as tomatoes, carrots, beetroots, potatoes, cabbage, lettuce, garlic, onions ginger, turmeric, chili peppers, butternut, water melons, sweet peppers, green mealies and fresh herbs.
However it has since emerged that farmers are now not just faced with high fuel prices but even the production inputs prices have gone up, a development that threatens to reverse the gains made in making the country self-sufficient.
Meanwhile the Minister of Finance Peggy Serame indicated that government will soon roll out a strategy which seeks to cushion consumers against the impact of inflation. It remains unclear how such strategy will impact the pockets of the farmers who are also calling for some form of subsidy from government. The rising fuel prices have ripple effects on consumers and businesses alike reducing disposable incomes and increasing business input costs.
