Mathatisi Sebusi
LESOTHO’s wool and mohair sector is struggling as farmers battle to get markets for their produce.
The sector is afflicted by a combination of factors including poor weather conditions and global conflicts including the Russia-Ukraine, Israel- Gaza wars and the China-Taiwan conflict.
Wool and mohair farmers say they are struggling to secure markets for their products which they mainly sell to Europe and Asian markets.
They also attribute the drop in sales to severe weather conditions which have borne diseases which have either killed their livestock or forced bans on export sales.
Lesotho National Wool and Mohair Growers Association (LNWMGA) member and prominent breeder, Khotsang Moshoeshoe, told the Lesotho Times that they were still struggling to recover from the losses they incurred in 2018 when then government enacted the Agricultural Marketing Wool and Mohair Licensing Regulations 2018 which restricted wool and mohair farmers from selling their products outside the country.
This resulted in a Chinese wool and mohair broker, Stone Shi, through his company Maseru Dawning, enjoying a monopoly as farmers were forced to sell via his wool centre in Thaba Bosiu, Maseru.
Those who tried to export their produce to South African brokers were arrested.
The regulations were later amended in 2019 after an outcry by the farmers. They have since been able to sell their products to destinations of their choices. More broker licences have also been issued.
Mr Moshoeshoe, a renowned wool and mohair farmer from Mokhotlong, said while the sector performed very well in the past two seasons as they were selling their fabric in the open market, things were not so rosy this season.
He said the international wars and conflicts have seen a drop in the performance of the sector. He however, said even so, they still managed to get a fair share for their fibre compared to when the government restricted them from selling the fibre to destinations of their choices and forced them to sell to Mr Shi who did not have money to pay them.
Mr Moshoeshoe said they are yet to shear for the 2024-2025 season but were not anticipating much profits because a lot of farmers lost a huge chunk of their livestock to blue tongue diseases.
“Basotho farmers are not used to prevention. They prefer to treat diseases. As much as blue tongue is curable, it can be prevented as well….Saving livestock when it has been infected with the disease is a challenge. Only about 2 out of 5 infected sheep can be saved,” he said.
Also talking to Lesotho Times, LNWMGA chairperson, Mokoenehi Thinyane, concurred that the sector had been hit by severe climatic factors and international wars while it was still trying to recover from its losses of 2018.
He said it would be very difficult for the sector to reach its normal peak as it was faced with a lot of challenges while the government was not offering any assistance.
Mr Thinyane said they had lost a lot of livestock to diseases which erupted due to severe weather conditions. Some were killed by snow while others drowned during heavy rains. The government had not done anything to help the sector, he said.
“We need assistance, but we are reluctant to ask the government as it has never helped us in any way before, despite the crises we have encountered throughout the years,” he said.
For his part, the Ministry of Agriculture, Food Security and Nutrition’s public relations officer, Lereko Masopha, said the government was aware of challenges faced by wool and mohair farmers and was doing all it could to assist them. He said under a project named Wool and Mohair Promotion Project (WAMP), farmers were afforded support to grow their stock. This included assistance with subsidized animal feeds which farmers were enabled to buy at half price.
He said the ministry also always assisted farmers with medicines whenever there was an outbreak of animal diseases.
Mr Masopha said the WAMPP was designed to boost resilience to the adverse effects of climate change and economic shocks, especially amongst farmers in rural parts of the country.
“The project focuses on climate-smart rangeland management, improved production and management of livestock, and improved handling and marketing strategies for wool and mohair fibres,” Mr Masopha said.
