National food security and self-sufficiency a priority

Breadcrumb

Namibia's goal is to enhance agricultural production and ensure national food security and self-sufficiency.

The Deputy Minister of Agriculture, Water, and Land Reform, Anna Shigwedha, made the remark in response to Popular Democratic Movement (PDM) leader McHenry Venaani's inquiries regarding drip irrigation and soil moisture management for small-scale commercial agriculture.

Tsumeb residents advised to continue boiling water

Breadcrumb

Residents of Tsumeb are advised to continue boiling water for consumption.

This was said by the town's chief executive officer, Victoria Kapenda.

Since last year, Tsumeb residents have been having serious water issues as a result of underground water contamination.

Dundee Precious Metals, which operates a copper smelting plant in the town, also confirmed that the water had high microbiological traces.

The process of shock chlorination, or the disinfection of water sources, led to an improvement in the water quality compared to last year.

International High-Level Panel Campaign launched

Breadcrumb

"As heads of state and governments, we must aim to close the water investment gap in Africa for the achievement of not only the water-related SDG targets on the continent, important as they are, but to enable the African continent to achieve her overall developmental goals."

This was the clarion call by President Hage Geingob during the launch of the International High-Level Panel Campaign, titled Mind the Gap: Invest in Water Raising Ambition, in a speech read on his behalf by the Minister of Agriculture, Water, and Land Reform, Carl Schlettwein.

MeatCo's Rundu abattoir inaugurated

Breadcrumb

The Ministry of Agriculture, Water, and Land Reform officially handed over the Rundu abattoir to MeatCo yesterday.

The abattoir is intended to serve as a market for cattle and small stock farmers in the Kavango East, West, and surrounding regions.

The construction of the Rundu abattoir started in 2014 and was expected to be completed in 2017.
 
The Minister of Agriculture, Water, and Land Reform, Carl Schlettwein, stated that the outbreak of COVID-19 and disruptions in tourism and other economic activities delayed the completion of the abattoir.

Resettled farmers in Erongo push hard to become commercial 

Breadcrumb

The Parliamentary Standing Committee on Natural Resources says the majority of resettled farmers in the Omaruru and Karibib areas are putting in extra effort to become commercial despite water problems.

The committee visited about 10 farmers resettled by the government in the Erongo Region to assess their success and challenges.


Most resettlement farms visited at Karibib and Omaruru by the parliamentarians are run by women.

Ombara Manasse Zeraua from the Zeraua Traditional Authority is among the 58 farmers resettled by the government in Erongo.

MAWLR to carry out awareness campaign on livestock identifying and branding

Breadcrumb

The Ministry of Agriculture, Water, and Land Reform will be carrying out an awareness campaign on the Namibia Livestock Identification and Traceability System and stock brands.

The campaign will be undertaken by the ministry's Directorate of Veterinary Services and the Meat Board of Namibia from the 17th of this month until the 31st of October.

The purpose of the campaign is to raise awareness and educate farmers on the appropriate use of cattle eartags and stock brands, as well as provide guidance on how to register on NamLITS online.

MeatCo a crucial entity in the meat market - Schlettwein

Breadcrumb

The Minister of Agriculture, Water, and Land Reform, Carl Schlettwein, says MeatCo still remains a crucial entity in the meat market and that it has no immediate replacement.

Schlettwein noted that although the government cannot keep up with bailing out MeatCo all the time, there are currently no plans to replace the entity, and it remains the heartbeat of the livestock sector.

Improvement of procurement process to allow smooth operations at green schemes needed

Breadcrumb

The Governor of the Kavango West Region, Sirkka Ausiku, has called on the Ministry of Agriculture, Water, and Forestry to improve its procurement process to allow green schemes to run effectively.

Hausiku made the remarks when she visited the Sikondo Green Scheme.

Ausiku says she is happy with the progress at Sikondo Green Scheme and is optimistic there could be a bumper harvest if the ministry improves its procurement process.

Despite the good results, the manager of the green scheme, Maxwell Nghidinua, says the farm is faced with challenges.