The Frans Indongo Group has donated a tractor worth N$800,000 to the Ukwangali Traditional Authority.

The tractor will be used to assist the community in agricultural production and strengthening food security.

Handing over the tractor at Kahenge in Kavango West, Prime Minister Elijah Ngurare appreciated the public-private partnership.

"Today we see the partnership NDP6 asks of us: Government, traditional leadership and business are working toward one goal. The Kavango West Region is blessed with fertile land, water from the Kavango River, and a people with a long farming tradition. This potential must be unlocked. Land has not been an issue. Access to tools to till it has been the stumbling block. Now, help is here."

He encouraged a fair arrangement for the sharing of the tractor.

Frans Indongo Group, represented by its chairman Martin Shipanga, says the donation is not the last.

"We don't know what we are going to do with Hompa, but what we are offering Hompa is our willingness. So on that note we want to say that as the Indongo group we have a duty and a responsibility to make a contribution to the development of our country in different ways and also make an impact in the communities in which we serve."

The Development and Economic Committee of the Ukwangali Traditional Authority has prioritised agricultural mechanisation, livestock and feedlot development, community infrastructure, food security, youth empowerment, and strategic partnerships with Government and the private sector.

"It is not going to be for free. For those that can afford it, they will be asked to pay because I know my people. You will tell everyone that we got a free tractor. Those who can afford it will pay, but mostly the elderly who are raising orphans – those ones will use it for free," stressed Ukwangali TAs Hompa Eugene Siwombe.

The tractor still needs a trailer, planter and a plough for it to operate fully.