THE Minister of Water Nkaku Kabi has called on herd boys across the country to protect wetlands, saying when they are well preserved, the entire nation can easily access water.
news
April 5, 2021
STAFF REPORTER
2 min read
Kabi teachers herd boys to preserve wetlands
The Minister of Water Nkaku Kabi
He made these remarks last week while visiting herd boys in Thaba-Putsoa in the ’Makhoalipana council in the Semonkong area.
Mr Kabi said the purpose of his visit was to explain to the herd boys and make them aware of the importance of protecting wetlands.
He said his ministry is on a mission to start a competition across the country in which the best behaved herd boy on issues of wetlands protection will be compensated.
The Chairperson of the ’Makhoalipana Community Council, Peta Mahlako said the ministry is faced with a big challenge of disseminating information to the herd boys on the importance of protecting the wetlands and swamps.
He noted that another the big challenge that the area is still faced with is the lack of telecommunications signal.
“The means to communicate through cell phones is impossible in this area because there is no signal. Sometimes during stock theft incidents people are unable to communicate well in order to stop the criminals,” Mr Mahlako also said.
One of the herd boys Ikaneng Mariti said it would be better to fence the earmarked wetlands and swamps, so that the herd boys and their animals would not have easy access to them, adding that some of his fellow herd boys do not have a clear understanding of the value of wetlands.
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He therefore applauded the ministry for the initiative to preserve the wetlands, saying herd boys spend a great deal of their time in remote areas where they do not have access to vital information.
This initiative follows the ministry’s closure of the World Water Week which was launched by the Minister of Water in February 19, under the theme ‘Valuing Water’.
At the same event, over 60 herd boys received parcels that comprised blankets and gumboots as a token of appreciation from Mr Kabi. LeNA