26 Nov 2024

Three citizen-owned companies were allocated a total of 77.78 hectares in Chobe National Park through a Ministerial Directive as provided for in the revised Botswana Land Policy of 2019.

Additionally, 351.188 hectares in Wildlife Management areas was allocated to two community trusts as lease renewals through ministerial guidance.

Answering a question in Parliament, the Minister of Lands and Agriculture, Dr Micus Chimbombi said the sites in the Chobe National Park were initially allocated through the tender process but later granted renewal.

He also noted that the majority of the lease renewals were undertaken in 2022/23.

The minister said that even though the lease renewals were for citizen-owned companies, one of them had shareholders who were citizens born in Botswana but Asian descendants.

Further, he said the ministry’s records did not classify citizenship according to descent and origin within Botswana and that allocations for community trusts were for communities within the district.

However, the minister noted that neither valuation of the development costs nor employment creation had been undertaken in those sites, noting that these were normally determined by the investment facilitation authorities to match investment with the proposals made.

Dr Chimbombi was responding to a question by Chobe MP, Mr Simasiku Mapulanga, who had asked if there had been any land allocated in Chobe District under Ministerial Directive from 2004 to 2024.

He requested the minister to state how many hectares and in which villages or zones such land was allocated, and how much of the land was allocated in the park or wildlife management areas.

The MP wanted to know how much of the land belonged to Batswana natives and in extension, the natives of Chobe, as well as the current status value in terms of development and employment creation.

He also asked the minister which year had the highest number of such Ministerial Directives. ENDS