The cattle and beef industry has traditionally played an important role in the
Botswana economy and society, with significant contributions to GDP, exports, and
employment, as well playing an important social and cultural role. In recent years,
however, there have been signs of decline and stagnation, especially in the beef export
sector, with adverse implications for the viability of cattle farming in the country, and
more generally for rural livelihoods. Within the industry, a central role has been
played by the Botswana Meat Commission (BMC), a state-owned company that has a
monopoly on beef exports and which also receives protection from a statutory ban on
live cattle exports. Notwithstanding the fact that Botswana receives privileged access
to the high-price European Union (EU) market, the main destination for BMC’s
exports, there is a growing crisis in the beef and cattle sector: throughput at BMC’s
abattoirs is declining, BMC is making losses, and prices paid to farmers are declining
in real terms. If present trends continue, prospects for the beef and cattle sector are
poor. As a result, it is widely acknowledged that major changes are needed,
encompassing the management and operation of BMC, beef/cattle marketing
arrangements, and raising the productivity of cattle faming operations, if the industry
is to thrive, indeed to survive.