Chris Schoonwinkel, a convenor of Nampo’s Boerepatente (farmers’ patents) competition, told Farmer’s Weekly during judging this morning that the competition received around 31 entries this year from 13 participants.

Daughter stayed behind in Botswana to tend to sheep

Most of the entries came from the Goosen family. Bertus Goosen, participating in the competition for his 23^rd time, entered 10 inventions, while his daughters Nicoline and Samantha entered four and one inventions respectively.

Bertus and Nicoline drove over 800km from their mixed farm near Matlakeng in Botswana to participate in the competition.

“Samantha would have loved to attend Nampo, but she could not make it this year, because her sheep are lambing,” Nicoline said.

Entries not focussed on winning but providing solutions

Bertus has won numerous categories in the competition over the years, but told Farmer’s Weekly that he has not kept count.

“For me it is not about winning, but bringing practical solutions to everyday problems. I love the thrill of creating something new and seeing people react with, ‘why did not I think of that?”

He added that most of his inventions are inspired by solving everyday problems that he and fellow farmers are experiencing. His entries reflect this, ranging from a masher to a rubber band spanner, a tool that easily removes alien plants (roots and all), a screwdriver that helps to remove rust from pipes and a floater valve for water troughs.

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