18 Jun 2024

 All parliamentary portfolio committee members on agriculture, lands and housing have expressed concern about delays regarding the completion of the Tsabong multi-species abattoir.

Speaking after a tour of the facility recently, committee members demanded answers on why the project, which commenced in January 2021 and scheduled to be completed in 18 months, was still in progress.

Chairperson of the committee and Kgalagadi South MP, Mr Sam Brooks said government invested millions on the project to benefit Batswana, but there was nothing to show due to delays.

He said they wanted answers so that they could provide oversight and assist to solve the challenges.

He said it was critical to bring to book those who caused the delay.

He also wanted to know how much had been spent and project overruns.

He also urged the contractor and all stakeholders involved to fasttrack the project. 

Another member of the oversight committee and MP for Takatokwane, Mr Tshoganetso Leuwe also wanted to know the project financial breakdown, accountability and transparency in order to make informed decisions regarding the project.

Gaborone Bonnington South MP, Mr Christian Greeff called for robust initial project planning, monitoring and management to avoid delays from the beginning on mega projects such as the multi-species abattoir.

He said all stakeholders should play their role before implementation to avoid delays.

Permanent secretary in the Ministry of Entrepreneurship, Mr Kabelo Ebineng acknowledged that the project was behind schedule and that they had spent P161 million, adding that they needed about P30 million  to complete the project.

He noted that the project still needed to be commissioned and licensed, adding that it was important to be honest and inform the committee about their challenges so that they could be assisted. 

“The abattoir will not operate in the next two months because there is a lot that needs to be done,” he said.

The abattoir engineer, Mr Ofentse Kgaogano said the project commenced in January 2021 and was awarded to IPS Botswana at a cost of P161 million. 

He said the abattoir had the capacity to slaughter 300 small stock per day and between 50 and 60 cattle per day.

He said COVID-19 delayed their progress due to movement restrictions, adding that critical mechanical components were shipped from Finland, Denmark and Hungary.

He also said they faced electricity shortage challenges as they sourced power from South Africa and that it was unreliable.

He added that the shortage of power also caused water shortage and they resorted to changing the project scope which led to cost overruns.

He also said they needed a back-up solar plant, adding that it was a long-term solution to electricity outages.

He revealed that a project addendum had been prepared to request for additional funds to complete the project. 

He said it included the  construction of a pipeline from the borehole to the abattoir, a backup generator as well as a solar plant, noting that they anticipated to hand over the project in August.

For his part, Kgosi David Toto II of Tsabong commended the parliamentary oversight committee for tracking the project progress. 

He expressed optimism that the abattoir would improve livelihoods through exploiting abattoir value chains. 

He called for a bitumen road network to enable the abattoir to function efficiently, saying the Tsabong-Hukuntsi gravel road must be upgraded to facilitate farmers from all parts of the country to easily access the abattoir. Ends