Red Cross gets P3.6m to reduce food insecurity
To benefit Kgalagadi and Nata- Gweta regions
Drought in Botswana has become persistent, making communities and households very vulnerable and food insecure.
Assistant Minister of Local Government and Rural Development Setlhabelo Modukanele highlighted this Wednesday, as Botswana Red Cross in collaboration with the International Federation of Red Cross and Crescent Societies ( IFRC) received financial assistance worth P3.6 million.
The money will contribute to the reduction in food and nutrition insecurity caused by natural hazards that are compounded by COVID- 19. Modukanele said financial assistance is timely. “This partnership could not have been more appropriate because of the urgency to go beyond poverty reduction and the need to focus on building resilience and investing in all Batswana so that they can contribute meaningfully to and share in the benefits of growth”. He said that persistent drought has resulted in the Government putting a substantial amount of its annual budget to assist the most affected households with food and coming up with subsidies for livestock and sometimes even wildlife. Modukanele applauded the Japanese and Red Cross initiative and emphasised that it also resonates well with his ministry’s ‘ strategic plan 2021- 2025’. Some of the strategy’s key pillars include; providing inclusive, shock responsive and adaptive social protection services and playing a catalytic role in building resilient sustainable economies. He is hopeful that the partnership will assist more households with the much needed food baskets and even more on the horticulture project. “This if done successfully will go a long way in assisting the government’s ambition of making the communities very resilient by the year 2023,” Modukanele said.
The project will be divided into two and benefit residents in Kgalagadi and Nata- Gweta regions. The Kgalagadi component will largely receive cash assistance while the Central Nata- Gweta will be on livelihoods being horticulture, poultry, small stock, bee keeping and borehole water reticulation.
Botswana Red Cross Society, Secretary General, Kutlwano Mukokomani said this support targets to increase the national society’s programme district coverage and reduce food and nutrition insecurity in communities caused by natural hazards and compounded by COVID- 19.
So far, the food security and livelihood programme has covered districts of Central, Southern, North West, South East and North East.
Mukokomani said they will now upscale to Kgalagadi in food assistance and distribution of agricultural inputs to promote horticulture. He said at least 410 households which is about 2460 people in Kgalagadi and Nata- Gweta will benefit from this project. Most of their target population include; people showing signs of distress through reduction in the number of meals or skipping meals, migration to big cities looking for piece work, selling of livestock or productive assets, crop and livestock loss and loss of employment besides targeting social disadvantaged groups and the marginalised. Ambassador of Japan to Botswana, Hoshiyama Takashi highlighted that natural disasters are always devastating and inevitable.
He said that the money will help to complement the already implemented measures by the Government of Botswana to help affected areas and affected people. “Unfortunately Japan, is an internationally famous disaster prone country, and has so far met a very serious earthquake and a subsequent Tsunami just 10 years ago in 2011 which killed 20 000 people in a moment”, he reminded, emphasising that Japanese people therefore know how helpless they are before natural disasters even in this technology advanced era.
“What we can do is only precaution, preparedness and disaster- mitigation effort, and emergency aid is also important”, Ambassador Takashi said.
He applauded the Government of Botswana for its various efforts in addressing global issues, and expressed confidence that affected areas and people would return to normalcy as soon as possible.