Presenting the State of the Nation Address on Monday, President Mokgweetsi Masisi said government will facilitate the establishment of a horticulture market.
“The market will enhance self-reliance, access, competitiveness, and price stability, the result of which will be the promoting of wider citizen participation in the agro-business and associated value chains,” he said.
The original Botswana Horticultural Market (BHM) ground to a half in 2017 after being hamstrung by financial challenges and a failure to achieve its objectives. From its inception in 2008, the BHM was heavily reliant on government’s subvention which saw government pumping in close to P2 million into the organisation. Initially, government was supposed to inject P10.5 million while Botswana Development Corporation's (BDC) contribution was to be P9.5 million with the remaining P30 million to come from financiers.
Government delivered on its end and the injection was mainly used to upgrade the BHM’s infrastructure and pay rentals for the warehouse. The BDC, meanwhile, pulled out expressing doubt over the viability of the business model.
Prior to its closure, the BHM had proposed a new strategy to use a wholesale model, rather than a commission one, as officials believed this could be more viable for the local market.
The horticultural market has been the missing link for local farmers who have been complaining that they have not been able to fully exploit government’s ban on the importation of 16 vegetables, as their production cannot find space on local retail shops’ shelves.
Farmers have accused retailers of attempting to impose their own prices and payment terms, which often do not mirror the financial sensitivities of the fledgling horticultural sector. Without a route to market, the vegetable import ban has often general shortages of supply and escalating prices.
According to Masisi, the move to restrict the importation of selected vegetables and fruits is bearing fruit, as he highlighted that the intervention has resulted in the decline of the fresh produce import bill from P634 million in 2018 to P182 million in 2023.
“We achieved this while simultaneously increasing our national capacity to produce the food we need daily at both household and national levels. “This demonstrates the positive impact of the import restrictions on the country’s import bill,” he said.
Critics, however, have said while the fresh import bill may have fallen, prices of vegetables have sharply increased, while quality and other standards have fallen, since the import ban. In the 12 months to September 2023, average vegetable prices were up nearly 12%, the highest of any food group measured by Statistics Botswana.
