Botswana’s ban on vegetable imports now in force

South African vegetable farmers could be negatively affected after Botswana implemented a two-year ban on some vegetable imports on 1 January, and prepared to introduce a new law that supported buying of vegetables from local farmers.

The country’s government announced a ban on imports of tomatoes, carrots, beetroot, potatoes, cabbage, lettuce, garlic, onions, ginger, turmeric, chilli peppers, butternut, water melons, sweet peppers, and green mealies.

Botswana’s minister of investment, trade and industry, Molebatsi Molebatsi, confirmed recently that, following the ban on the vegetable imports from South Africa and other vegetableexporting countries, new legislation would come into force on 1 April that would compel local retailers to buy vegetables from farmers in Botswana.

According Molebatsi, the Economic Inclusion Law Section 25(1) was aimed at compelling private sector entities, including retailers, to foster business relationships with local farmers, establish procurement partnerships with farmers, and introduce a supplier development programme intended to ensure that farmers meet the quality and quantity required by buyers.

“The [new Act] is expected to ensure that local retailers and companies that import vegetables stop buying the selected vegetables from farms outside Botswana and purchase them from local farmers,” he said.

He noted that Botswana had fertile land and the capacity to produce vegetables.

“We have adequate land with good-quality soil suitable for farming, just like all the countries that have been exporting vegetables to us. We also have farmers who are ready to meet the required demand for the selected vegetables. We’ve realised we need the law to support the farmers to access the market.”

Assistant agricultural minister Beauty Manake said that in addition to the new law and ban on imports, that country’s government had initiated subsidies for horticulture farmers to expand their operations, produce vegetables on a continuous basis, and comply with mandatory standards, grading and traceability systems for farm produce.

“The subsidies are intended to fund programmes expected to cushion farmers from harsh climatic conditions,” she explained.

Local horticultural farmer Neo Seate expressed appreciation to the Botswana government for the new legislation, thereby facilitating farmers’ access to the market. He added that farmers’ associations had started training local farmers on quality standards.

He said in the first few months following the ban, there was a possibility that some farmers could struggle to meet the required quality standards as training was still ongoing. Another farmer, Richard Molosiwa, expressed confidence that local farmers had the capacity to supply quality produce similar to that imported. – Tshiamo Tabane