In May, the government spent P25 million in the acquisition of 141 bulls and 21 heifers from Texas but after President Mokgweetsi Masisi’s recent visit to Australia, the government has since opted to purchase 4, 000 straws of semen from Droughtmaster and Wagyu cattle. Instead of buying live cattle like it did with Texas breeds, the government has decided to buy semen which is less costly in terms of transportation. Earlier this year, government disclosed that transporting the 162 high-quality breeding Texas cattle alone gobbled P8.6 million.
Speaking to the media about their latest acquisition, the Minister of Agriculture Fidelis Molao, said they undertook a visit to Australia from August 27 to September 10, 2023 partly as a benchmarking exercise to identify possible areas of collaboration on crops and livestock production, agricultural research and development, and related areas. To get a more accurate picture of how agriculture is done in Australia, Molao revealed that they visited various farms where they purchased straws of semen for resale to the public. Molao indicated that they went to buy semen at Glencoe Farm which specialises in Droughtmaster cattle. “Although this breed is already available in Botswana, it is noteworthy that Australia continues to undertake rigorous genetic selection to improve the breed. The Ministry of Agriculture has purchased 3, 000 straws of the Droughtmaster semen, for resale to the public, which are yet to be delivered,” Molao disclosed.
Molao also pointed out that they also visited Trent Bridge Wagyu Farm where they purchased 1, 000 semen straws of Wagyu for resale to Batswana. “Trent Bridge Wagyu Farm is a 4, 500 hectare family-owned business in Armidale, with over 2, 000 Wagyu cattle,” Molao further said. The semen purchase from Australia comes shortly after Masisi and his Cabinet had received backlash following their decision to purchase semen and hold a meeting at Ramatlabama National AI Laboratory now home to the 141 bulls and 21 heifers from Texas. Although Masisi later stirred further controversy by stating that he had forced his ministers to purchase bull semen, the main contention was why the public was not given first priority. Masisi clarified that semen is open to be purchased by any member of the public as has been done for many years. With the Australian semen it will be up to Masisi to decide if ministers will once again be forced to buy before opening to the public. The government has previously indicated that this initiative of buying elite breeds and semen is in line with the government’s Reset Agenda to revive the livestock sub-sector and ensure value chain development within the sector. Speaking of sectors, Molao also added that as Botswana gears towards establishing the Meat Industry Regulatory Authority (MIRA), therefore, the visit was prudent to get first hand information, and to learn from Australia, where they have an effective and advanced regulatory authority for meat, which dates as far back as 1936. “Australia also has a traceability system, co-implemented by the government and industry, from which Botswana stands to learn. Furthermore, Australia is renowned for a superior agricultural research system which is supported by both government and industry, which offers lessons for Botswana’s research organisations, such as the National Agricultural Research and Development Institute (NARDI), the Botswana University of Agriculture and Natural Resources (BUAN), among others,” he said.
Molao maintained that the Australian visit provided the Botswana team with an opportunity for first-hand experience on the operations of the MIRA, the animal traceability system, identification of improved cattle breeds that are suitable for Botswana, as well as building collaborative relationships. “An important take home from Australia is that the red meat sub-sector is primarily responsible for all its activities and strategic direction, with the government’s role restricted to provision of a supportive environment,” he concluded.
