GABORONE, June 15 (Xinhua) -- Botswana on Monday launched a National Fodder Strategy aimed at transforming the southern African nation's agriculture sector, reducing dependency on imported animal feed, and building climate resilience.
"Feed security is the foundation of a resilient livestock industry for any country. More so for an arid country like ours," Minister of Lands and Agriculture Edwin Dikoloti said as the strategy was unveiled in Gaborone, the capital of Botswana.
Dikoloti said the government has set a target to raise agriculture's contribution to the gross domestic product from 2 percent to between 6 percent and 10 percent over the next five years, and expand the national cattle population to five million.
The new strategy, which promotes localized, climate-smart production of fodder crops such as lablab and lucerne, is expected to increase national livestock feed demand by about 103 percent by 2030, while growing the dairy industry by at least 60 percent and reducing the dairy import bill by nearly 75 percent, according to the minister.
Carla Mucavi, Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations representative in Botswana, described the strategy as "a milestone that reflects Botswana's commitment to transforming its agriculture sector and strengthening the resilience of its agrifood systems."
Mucavi emphasized that in a semi-arid country like Botswana, where rainfall patterns are increasingly unpredictable, the strategy is "both timely and strategic." She noted that fodder security becomes even more critical in the context of foot-and-mouth disease, which has disrupted livestock movement and constrained trade.
"Strengthening local fodder production, establishing strategic feed reserves, and improving feed systems will help farmers maintain healthy livestock during movement restrictions, reduce distress sales, and enhance the sector's capacity to recover and withstand future shocks," Mucavi said. ■