Botswana’s National Food Technology Research Centre (NFTRC) plays an important role in the national economy. Managing Director Dr. Martin Kebakile explains, “Our mandate is to focus on R&D concerning adding value to local products as well as to facilitate the growth of Botswana’s food industry. We also develop strategies for promoting better nutrition and address food-safety issues. In addition, NFTRC serves as a one-stop shop for food-industry entrepreneurs.”
NFTRC provides a variety of services for SMEs and entrepreneurs, including technical assistance, help in setting up processing facilities, laboratory services to guarantee food safety and proper labelling, special support for foreign investors, and workshops to facilitate local and regional knowledge-sharing. NFTRC works with several regional and international organisations and was recently named an official “lead Centre of Excellence in the area of empowering youth, women and smallholder farmers in agribusiness support and development in the SADC region” by the Centre for Coordination of Agricultural Research in Southern Africa (CCARDESA). One of NFTRC’s current projects is Botswana’s first horticultural products processing facility, which is envisaged to facilitate growth of the horticultural sector in the country.
Dr. Martin Kebakile welcomes foreign investors. He says, “Botswana is ideally located in the heart of SADC and its food sector has enormous potential, for example in the beef industry. We need investors who will go the extra mile and get involved in food production as well as processing. Our mission is to make Botswana’s food industry very vibrant and highly competitive.”
National Food Technology Research Centre
Plot 1840 Mpuutsane Industrial Area
Lobatse Road, Kanye
Private Bag 008, Kanye
Tel.: +267 544 0441
