Excellencies of Heads of states;
Chairperson of Governing Council of IFAD;
President of IFAD;
Excellencies;
Members of the Governing Council of IFAD;
Ladies and Gentlemen;
Distinguished participates;

Peace be unto you all.

Chairperson,

It is indeed a great pleasure and honour for me to represent my country at this noble occasion of the 33rd Session of the IFAD Governing Council.

I wish to take this opportunity to congratulate Dr. Kanaya Nwanze on his nomination as the fifth President of IFAD.

Chairperson,

Botswana has as a member of IFAD benefited immensely from programmes offered by the institution. Since its establishment, IFAD has assisted Botswana in terms of soft loans in the field of crop production.

In this regard the Government of Botswana highly comments IFAD for this gesture.

However, Botswana highly depends on the revenue from diamonds and has been hardly affected by the global economic crisis. From this experience, Botswana saw the need to fast track her mission of diversifying her economy.

Agricultural sector is among the areas identified and hence the Government is faced with a mammoth challenge to diversify her agricultural base.

Chairperson,

It is through opportunities offered by institutions such as IFAD that could assist Botswana promote and sustain her agricultural sector and contribute to food security.

It should be noted that the country is termed a ‘middle income country’, which tends to disadvantage her from receiving financial assistance from developed countries as well as other international donors.

Nevertheless, Botswana has equally been affected by this economic crisis and therefore needs continues assistance to lessen effects of the economic crunch.

In this regard IFAD should kindly consider along side other countries, assisting Botswana with grants as opposed to loans. This could greatly assist the country to drive her National Development Plan 10 (NDP 10) in particular to 1991 National Policy on Agriculture Development, which strives to perpetrate Food Security and Poverty Alleviation programmes and projects.

Chairperson,

On the other hand Botswana is aware that some countries are more disadvantaged than herself, but it should not be overlooked that the country is semi-acid, which makes it prone to harsh climatic conditions such as drought, erratic rainfall and heat waves, which subsequently lead to lower agricultural production.

Chairperson,

In conclusion, I would like to thank IFAD for convening this important meeting and according member states to share views on this topical issue.

Chairperson,

Let me once again take this opportunity to re-assure the new Governing Council of Botswana’s commitment and support to empower the poor and overcome poverty.

Ladies and gentlemen, thank you for your attention.

18 February 2010