A new engine for horticulture fires up
Pauline Dikuelo | Monday September 23, 2024 11:19
The Citizen Entrepreneurial Development Agency (CEDA) this week launched the Letsema Horticultural Market, a 1,000-square-metre warehouse in Gaborone, aimed at revolutionising the horticultural sector in Botswana. The initiative will serve as a centralised market that procures produce from local farmers and sells it to the public, promoting both market stability and the growth of local agriculture.
The development comes seven years after the original Botswana Horticultural Market (BHM) closed down in Gaborone, hamstrung by financial challenges and a failure to achieve its objectives.
The horticultural ban on selected vegetables that has been in place since January 2022 has however exposed the critical gap between farm and fork, as local producers have found themselves squeezed off the shelves of supermarket chains and forced to individually explore retail avenues.
The Letsema Horticultural Market promises better standardisation in terms of supply, quality, and pricing for both farmers and consumers, issues that have plagued the country since the horticultural ban kicked in.
This week, officials said the Letsema Horticultural Market is designed to increase the return on investment for local horticulture farmers, stabilise market prices, and enhance competitiveness in the horticultural sector. It will cater to fruit and vegetable produce from across the country, creating a direct link between farmers and buyers, including wholesalers, hawkers, and distributors.
By acting as a central aggregation point, the market will streamline operations, reduce logistical challenges, and ensure fresh produce from every corner of the country reaches the marketplace in Gaborone.
Commenting on the development, Entrepreneurship minister, Karabo Gare said farmers now have a reliable marketplace where their produce is handled with care and professionalism, removing the uncertainty of selling through traditional fragmented channels where retailers often dictate prices.
Currently, the Letsema Horticultural Market operates in Gaborone, but there are plans to expand by establishing collection centres across the country in key agricultural regions such as Francistown, Gantsi and Maun. CEDA also intends to retrofit some of Botswana Agricultural Marketing Board’s (BAMB) 10 warehouses to serve as additional collection points.
“These centres will be equipped with modern infrastructure, including cold storage facilities and packaging areas,” he said this week.
“Farmers in these regions will deliver their produce to the centres, where it will be graded, sorted, and then transported to the Gaborone market.”
Additionally, the minister said CEDA aims to transition the market into a permanent, purpose-built facility featuring processing facilities and farmers’ shops. The upscaled move will transform the market from its current transitional model to a more sustainable, permanent solution for the horticultural industry.
The development of the Letsema Horticultural Market comes after extensive benchmarking and learning from past initiatives, such as the BHM, which failed due to a lack of basic infrastructure like cold rooms and a payment system that placed a financial burden on farmers.
In contrast, Gare said Letsema provides a transparent, fair platform that benefits farmers regardless of their size, ensuring that they are not subjected to the long waiting periods for payment or high commission charges that plagued earlier models.
The horticulture sector in Botswana has historically been fragmented, with farmers often at the mercy of retailers who dictate prices, leaving primary producers as mere price-takers. Gare emphasised that the Letsema Horticultural Market will change this narrative by acting as an aggregation point where farmers can sell their produce on a fair, transparent platform.
“The market is designed to support farmers by implementing high grading standards and segmenting produce for retail or processing, ensuring that farmers receive the market access and support they need,” he said.
The market’s primary objectives include improving the quality and quantity of vegetable production, reducing reliance on imported produce, fostering export growth, and creating sustainable job opportunities for locals. By promoting value addition, enhancing smallholder farmers’ capacity, and reducing post-harvest losses, the Letsema Horticultural Market aims to provide stable market access and improve the overall horticultural value chain.
According to CEDA CEO, Thabo Thamane, the market is expected to serve as a catalyst for increased productivity amongst local farmers. He said the impact of import restrictions on vegetables has resulted in a significant demand for locally produced goods. Thamane said Botswana’s horticultural import bill has seen a dramatic reduction from P634 million in 2018 to P182 million in 2023, a 71% decrease equivalent to P452 million.
“This positive outcome reflects the increased output from local farmers, driven by the vegetable ban and the support from initiatives like the Letsema Horticultural Market,” he said.
Letsema’s main centre in Gaborone will feature eight cold rooms, each measuring 60 square metres and capable of holding up to 60 pallets.
The market also plans to provide transportation services to farmers at a fee, using refrigerated trucks to collect produce from collection points and transport low-grade and spoiled produce to the NAPRO Factory in Selebi-Phikwe for processing.
Additionally, some transportation services will be outsourced to citizen-owned haulage companies, promoting local business participation in the supply chain.