Bracing for a poor harvest and drought conditions

Botswana is bracing itself for a poor harvest after the ministry of agriculture estimated that only three percent of cultivable land has been ploughed this rainy season. The overall hectarage ploughed by mid-January was reckoned at 12,450 ha out of the national baseline area of 325,000 ha. "Usually about 150,000 ha, which is about half the total of the hectarage ploughed when the country has received good early rains, should have been ploughed and planted by this time of the season," chief crop production officer, Peter Montshiwa Montshiwa, told IRIN. Botswana's rainy season usually extends from November to March but Montshiwa pointed out that according to the assessments, crops were still at the seedling and emerging stages. Although a few isolated parts of the country had received normal to above normal rainfall in the second half of November, a dry spell followed. "This hampered ploughing and planting operations, and might contribute negatively to crop production if the country continues to receive below average rainfall," Montshiwa noted. Fred Molotsi, acting director of the Department of Meteorological services, said the rainfall received to date had been 78 mm. The average annual rainfall of Botswana varies from a maximum of about 650 mm in the northern part of the country to a minimum of just under 250 mm in the extreme southwest. "In fact, the last 10 years have been among the warmest years on record. This is a clear indication that global warming and climate change is a reality." He predicted that some parts of the country would receive normal rainfall until March, which would be adequate for agricultural production if farmers planted crops that were sustainable despite erratic weather. Ploughing and planting operations in the communal sub-sector did not start until after the good rains received in most agricultural districts during the first half of December 2004, but the country continued to experience dry spells in most districts, so ploughing and planting operations were at a standstill. An official with the department of local government told IRIN that Botswana might extend drought relief interventions - normally suspended during the rainy season - to assist farmers adversely affected by the below normal rainfall. Under the programme vulnerable households are provided with financial assistance to purchase food, there are feeding programmes for children aged under five, as well as those suffering from tuberculosis. People are also allowed to register as temporarily destitute and receive welfare assistance to tide them over. The interventions also safeguard livestock, one of the biggest assets of the Batswana, through the temporary distribution of subsidised feed.