Windhoek
President Hage Geingob is concerned about the exorbitant cost for the construction of the food bank, which he said in essence defeats the objective of the project.
Geingob raised this concern after consultations with the Minister of Poverty Eradication and Social Welfare, Bishop Zephania Kameeta, adding that the food bank is envisaged to be constructed on a piece of land availed by the City of Windhoek, for which the government is expected to pay.
“The president emphasised the need for all institutions, especially regional and local authorities, to support and contribute towards this noble initiative in order to cut on the administrative and logistical costs of the food bank project,” said the press secretary in the office of the president, Albertus Aochamub.
The food bank is aimed at reducing poverty and hunger, as outlined in the Harambee Prosperity Plan, added Aochamub in the statement to the media.
In addition, Aochamub said that Cabinet directed that the construction of the food bank be revisited and more quotations sought with a view to obtaining reasonable and affordable quotations for the construction of the food bank.
“In the same vein, the Minister of Poverty Eradication and Social Welfare was directed to engage the Minister of Works and Transport to explore affordable building options for the construction of the food bank,” said Aochamub.
Furthermore, the president expressed the need to engage wholesale outlets, such as Woermann Brock, Pick n Pay, Checkers and others, in storing the food meant for the food bank as a cost-cutting measure, said the press secretary.
“These wholesalers will also be engaged in order to determine what role they could play to assist in the distribution of food by the street committees that are currently being formed and trained,” explained Aochamub.
He said further that as an interim measure it was resolved that warehouses of the Office of the Prime Minister would be used to store food and roll out the programme to identified constituencies in Windhoek, on a pilot basis.
The president further encouraged the Ministry of Poverty Eradication and Social Welfare to propose a model structure of the food bank to Cabinet at an appropriate time, Aochamub said.
“In this regard, Cabinet resolved that a brainstorming session for Cabinet members on the food bank project be convened during the first or second week of June 2016,” explained Aochamub.
In addition, Aochamub also revealed that Geingob has sounded out some of the about 4 000 commercial farmers to donate cattle and other livestock to the food bank.
Many of the farmers sounded out have responded positively to the call of providing livestock on a voluntary basis to the food bank, added Aochamub. “Even if only half or a third of the commercial farming community donate one or two head of cattle to the food bank, it will go a long way in addressing the plight of hunger and poverty,” he said further.
In addition, the president will request the Ministry of Environment and Tourism to identify game in national parks that could be donated to the food bank in the natural culling process where feasible.
Similarly, the Minister of Fisheries and Marine Resources will engage the fishing community to donate some fish as part of their corporate social responsibility to the food bank, Aochamub said further.