Windhoek
The continued absence of rain in the greater Omaheke region has farmers worried, fearing the loss of livestock and weakening of water points as the drought worsens.
The season has now reached its driest period and the region is yet to recover from last year’s dry spell and the drought of 2013 – said to have been the worse in three decades, which caused huge losses as farmers had to sit by and watch their animals die.
Farmers in the drought-prone constituencies of Aminuis and Otjombinde already started in March this year to prepare for the worst, as rain continued to stay away. In Aminuis, the drought has also taken its toll on humans, as farmers – most of whom are dependent on cattle-rearing for survival – can no longer milk their livestock due to the weak condition they are in.
Many cattle slaughtered in Aminuis during the last drought were found with nothing but sand in their bellies, from the constant foraging for the insufficient and almost non-existent grazing.
This year the situation has further deteriorated in the absence of rains on the 2014/15 season, with only little or insufficient rain received.
“We had it tough in 2013 in terms of the drought, but we must consider that we were coming from a relatively better year in 2014 in terms of rainfall. If the rains continue to stay away as it is now, and given 2013’s drought, we realise we are in for a rude awakening during 2015,” farmer Edgard Hengari of Otjomukona village in the Aminuis constituency village, said.
Traditional leaders in Aminuis, many of whom have had to deal with constant pleas for assistance from desperate farmers fearing a total wipe-out of their hard-earned livestock to drought, have now resorted to a wait-and-see approach as they too have run out of ideas to remedy the situation.
“We do not know what else to do. We hear the pleas of the people and we know what they are going through. We too are affected, but what can we do? Let us leave it all in God’s hands, as he is the one that brings the rain,” Othniel Kavari, a senior traditional leader based at Aminuis noted.
Selling off livestock to avoid the prevailing drought conditions as per the government’s call during the 2013/2014 drought spell, could have an even higher price tag for affected farmers, as they risk restocking on their livestock counts at much higher prices, given that the prices are bound to stabilise at the height of the looming rainy season.