09 Mar, 2024
The BUAN multi-disciplinary team attended the Boteti West Cattle Management & Industry Expo held at Rakops on Saturday 9 March 10, 2024. BUAN participated in response to invitation by the BUAN Chancellor and His Honor, The Vice President Mr Slumber Tsogwane who was also the guest speaker. The event could not have been initiated at a better time due to the impending serious drought anticipated in the Boteti district and most of the country. The invitation of BUAN is in recognition of the role BUAN is playing and is expected to continue playing in the development of capacity in agriculture, food and sustainable natural resources utilization in Botswana. According to the organizers invitation, “The purpose of the cattle exposition involves the use of live demonstration, exposition interventions and communication of information in order to induce positive change on how farmers view cattle/beef production to improve their cattle herd and quality and in the process ensure that Boteti contributes to food security in Botswana.” Further to this statement, the program content sought BUAN to share research findings relevant to cattle production and research findings agricultural livelihoods in general. To this end, the composition of the BUAN reflected the specializations and holistic approach the University has embarked on to make its contribution to education, training, research and service to the communities. Professor Kebatenne Hulela of Agricultural Education was the Head Of Delegation for the day. Other members included Mr Mathengwane of Crop and Soil Science, Ms Masule from Academic and Student Services, Mr Motladiile from BUAN Farm Enterprise and Mr Ditlhokwa from CICE. The stall was equipped with a poster, specimens of feed ingredients, a cattle pregnancy diagnosis kit, and display of leaflets and flyers for academic programmes and short courses. The day was spent sharing information about BUAN services, an overview of BUAN mandate and demonstrating how to make feed blocks for ruminants.
06 Mar, 2024
Illustrating their close-knit collaboration, the Botswana University of Agriculture and Natural Resources and the National Agricultural Research Development Institute have a longstanding history of working together on various ventures, notably the DIVAGRI project. They consistently lend support to one another's initiatives. Just recently, on March 6th, BUAN stood firmly behind the "TEMO EXPO" initiative, a platform highlighting advanced agricultural technologies. The event, officiated by His Honor the Vice President, Slumber Tsogwane, marked another milestone in their partnership.
01 Mar, 2024
African Women play a vital role in Agriculture. They account for up to 52% of the people in the sector and roughly 50% of farming labour on farms in Sub-Saharan Africa. In fact, FAO reports that this number increases to over 60% in least developed countries. FAO further reports that 70% of small-scale farmers are Women. According to the Wilson Center, these small-scale farmers produce 70 % of Africa's food. This suggests that Women indeed feed Africa. According to UN-Women, Women in Sub-Saharan Africa collectively spend about 40 billion hours a year collecting water. Per week, Women in Guinea collect water for about 6 hours, compared to 2 hours for men; in Sierra Leone, Women spend 7 compared to 4 hours for men; and in Malawi this figure is 9.1 compared to 1.1 hours. The UN Inter-Agency Task Force on Rural Women reports that Environmental degradation has a more deleterious impact on Women than men. Generally, rural Women rely on natural resources because they tend to have limited occupational options. Therefore, we are challenged as a specialised University of Agriculture and Natural Resources, to empower Women in the Agriculture and Natural Resources sectors. Our task as a university is to assist Botswana to become Food and Nutrition secure. The most effective way to achieve this is to develop Strategies, Programs, and Plans targeted specifically at Women in the Agriculture and Natural resources sectors. After all, to educate a Woman is to build a nation. Therefore, the best way to feed Botswana is to teach Women how best to optimise the utility of agriculture and natural resources towards food production. The best way for Botswana to achieve Vision 2036, is through Women empowerment. The best way to revolutionise economic transformation in Botswana is to empower Women. Said Prof. Mosepele during BUAN's Women's Month Launch. The institution saw it fit to celebrate its women on 1st March. The aim of this event was to appreciate and encourage women within the instution.
Promote individuals to own up and accept responsibility.
Promote coopretaion and colllaboration.
Provide an exceptional customer experience at the point of service.
Provide exceptional perfomance through productivity, discipline and quality of service.
Embrace creativity for progress.
Maintain high moral standing.