Botswana president declares whole country drought stricken

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Botswana President Ian Khama has declared the whole country is drought stricken, said a statement received here on Friday.
Khama has adopted relief measures and actions for the period July 1, 2015 to June 30, 2016, said a statement released by Ministry of Local Government and Rural Development.
The landlocked country is largely arid to semi-arid, with 70 percent of its land covered by the Kalahari Desert.
A drought assessment for 2014-2015 conducted by the ministry says the southern Africa country suffered a significant decline in rainfall distribution, coupled with scorching heat wave resulting in low hectarage ploughed and planted, said the statement.
The yield forecast has drastically declined with the national estimated production for cereals standing at 3 percent of the national cereal requirement, the assessment has shown.
The available grazing and water will not sustain livestock until the next rainy season as a result of the poor rainfall received and dry spell experienced. Water levels were observed to be relatively low in catchment areas in some rivers as compared to the year 2013/2014. Malnutrition levels in some areas are still higher than the 3 percent national target for total malnutrition, said the statement. Enditem

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