18 Mar 2015

Some years back when he was still growing up in his native Thamaga village, his parents were at one stage envied as master farmers commanding about 800 herds of cattle.

This fact has never been in dispute as Mr Keabetswe Monametsi-Ntsatsi would routinely go with his parents to the cattle post whenever he got chance. However, at that stage it was not easy for his parents to tell whether the routine was out of passion, for the excitement was no different from that of any other boy his age.

As he grew up, so did the passion for cattle, and he says in an interview: “I guess because of my parents’ involvement in the cattle industry, my career as a farmer was determined long before I was born.  All I had to do was just fit in like a hand in glove,” he quips. 

As the first born and a male child for that matter, perhaps it was only a matter of societal expectation that he had to follow on his father’s footsteps, and luckily for him, he had the right passion.

After high school, Mr Monametsi-Ntsatsi went to study at the University of North West in South Africa but unfortunately he had to quit and come back home to take care of the family farm after his father became very ill. 

 “My younger sibling is a female, so the pressure was on me as the male child to come and assist but even after my father got better I did not go back to university as I decided to focus on cattle farming,” he says. 

Like chicks, male children are expected to leave their parents’ roost and establish their own when they come of age. It was then that during the 2012/13 financial year he received funding from the Department of Youth under the Youth Development Fund (YDF) to start his own project.

“The Department of Youth funded me to the tune of P100 000, and because my parents had promised to give me a jump-start, I then used all the money to buy 20 pregnant heifers,” he recalls.

By the jump-start, Mr Monametsi-Ntsatsi referred to the fact that his father owned a large farm and a borehole, so he ceded a 3km-by-3km paddock for him to start.  

“My father also provided me with a bull and allowed me to use his borehole, so you can say I had my job already cut out,” he says with a sly smile, adding that the fact that his father assisted him with other basics that allowed him to use all the funding to buy cattle.

 “Just setting up kraals cost me about P30 000, and imagine if you build the kraals with part of the funding, then one would be forced to reduce the number of cattle,” he says.

As young as 31 years old, a visit to his farm indicates it is no different from that of a seasoned farmer who has been in the trade for many years, and today he boasts between 100 and 110 cattle, excluding the 43 calves.

Despite his thriving business, Mr Monametsi-Ntsatsi says it is not without challenges such as predators in leopards and wild dogs in the area.

 He says he lost five of his cattle to these predators between November last year and January this year.

Another problem is that pastures in the area are not good and are sometimes affected by drought, which means extra costs as he has to buy supplements to feed the cattle.

He also decries lack of seriousness on the part of herdsmen, saying they are unreliable which explains why he does not have not a single herdsman.

However, he says other common challenges in the cattle industry such as diseases are not that problematic, and, despite his large herd of cattle, Mr Monametsi-Ntsatsi says he has not started selling yet as he has not reached his target.

“I want to accumulate up to at least 150 breeding stock (female cattle that are ready to breed) before I can start calling myself a competitive farmer who can start selling. Currently I have only 70, which means I have to more than double it up,” he reckons.

 Across the country, many young people are reportedly leaving projects to collapse, thereby pouring government funding down the drain; Mr Monametsi-Ntsatsi attributes this to lack of passion.

“I will encourage fellow youths to choose projects they have passion in. Passion is the main driving force in any business, as such they should not choose a project just because funding is available,” advises the young farmer, who also runs a car wash and internet café.

There are some who believe cattle are difficult to deal with given they require a lot of work but the young farmer sees this as just a misconception.

“As long as you take good care of them to prevent factors such as straying, the work is not that tiresome,” he argues.

Commenting on YDF, Mr Monametsi-Ntsatsi says although the initiative is good, government still needs to iron it out here and there.

“I think the ceiling for funding some projects such as cattle farming should be increased from the current P100 000 because the funds are just too small for a startup. Like I said, if you use the funds for basic things such as kraals and water reticulation, it gobbles up the better part of the funds, leaving only a small amount to buy cattle,” he says.

The fact that beef production takes longer before realising profits, unlike other projects, compounds the problem, he says, urging youth his age to work hard to promote beef production in the country. 

“Our fathers have done their part and now it is time for the younger generation to take over,” he appeals.

Mr Monametsi-Ntsatsi also urges cattle farmers in general to ensure they kept quality breeds instead of quantity, adding that traditionally, a man was man because of the number of herds he kept.

However, he counters this line of thinking by saying currently,  economic variables find no wisdom in such given that if you emphasise more on quantity instead of quality you spend a lot on the upkeep albeit with low returns, whilst with quality breeds one can get more profit by selling just one beast, he says.

Letlhakeng Sub-district prorgammes officer, Ms Oakantse Kebuamotse, says the project is doing exceptionally well notwithstanding some challenges. 

“The beneficiary is so much committed to the project, an attribute evidenced by his contribution to the development of the project from inception,” she says.

Ms Kebuamotse also showers the upcoming young farmer with praises, saying “his love for cattle keeps him growing and yearning for more as witnessed by the additional number of stock he has procured.

 If all YDF beneficiaries were this passionate about their projects, the success rate would be so great,” she reckons.   Just as his father, the young Monametsi-Ntsatsi is looking forward to the day he would also be held in high regard as one of the successful farmers in his village. 

His father has done his part and now he believes it is time he assumes the reign.  For the moment, he is still slowly but surely establishing his legacy in the quiet farms of Maretlwane Ranch along the Magagarape-Jwaneng gravel road.

He is confident that by the time he emerges like a leviathan from hibernation to claim his stake at the master farmer’s table, the country will take note. ENDS