31 Jul 2024

The newly opened grain silos in Pandamatenga will enhance food security and promote innovation in the agriculture sector.

Officially opening the silos yesterday, President Dr Mokgweetsi Masisi said the 60 000 metric tonne silos consisted of cutting edge electrical and instrumentation systems as well as durable storages that preserved the quality of grains.

He said Pandamatenga as a special economic zone and epicentre for arable agriculture required proper infrastructure to cultivate more opportunities for sustainable development.

President Masisi said they wanted to see Batswana happy and prosperous and that the special economic zones helped to create employment and fight hunger.

He noted that Pandamatenga farms consisted of over 97 000 hectares, 44 000 of which was commercial, 12 000 small scale farmers and 41 000 earmarked for the Zambezi integrated agro-commercial development project.

Furthermore, he said a railway line traversing through Pandamatenga was on the cards to enhance the movement of goods, including grain stored at the silos to the upper Zambezi region and the rest of the continent.

He said the silos would also enhance food security and store grains for consumption during droughts and to sell to other countries.

 “The storage facility allows us to conduct tests on our produce and to explore food processing opportunities,” said President Masisi.

He thanked SEZA for funding the project and BAMB for providing land and managing the project as well as other stakeholders for ensuring that the projects was successful.

Kgosi Rebecca Banika of Pandamatenga said the silo’s infrastructure propelled her village to even greater heights and as a hub for arable farming.

She said the silos would enhance food production and that they had inadequate storage for all the produce in the area.

Kgosi Banika said Pandamatenga farmers, both commercial and small-scale, were business minded and took farming seriously. 

She urged government and the private sector to invest in small-scale farmers by erecting durable fences in their fields to deter wildlife.

Kgosi Banika also urged her people to teach children about farming so that they could carry the legacy.

She said the facility would also prompt Batswana to venture into food processing as they ploughed sunflower but imported cooking oil. Ends