The Environmental Investment Fund of Namibia has handed over three completed greenhouse units, a hydroponic unit for fodder production, a nursery, one borehole retrofitted with solar as well as a 10 000-litre water tank and a cold storage facility to the Okongo Community Forestry Horticultural Project in the Ohangwena region last Tuesday.
The project has the potential to change and transform the lives of the people through income-generation, thus fighting hunger, poverty and unemployment.
The Okongo community forest was established in 1997, but the EIF stepped in to fund the project from August 2019 to August 2021 to the tune of N$3 million.
The EIF is an organisation with the mandate to raise funds for investments into projects and programmes that promote sustainable development.
It aims to be a recognised leader in the development and application of innovative financing mechanisms to support sustainable development, and ensure inclusive development for all the people of Namibia
According to EIF spokesperson Lot Ndamanomhata, this community project aims to increase the resilience of vulnerable members to adapt to climate change threats.
“The Okongo Community Forest covers 55 918 ha of land in the Ohangwena region. The major sources of livelihoods for the communities in Okongo are focused on crop production, livestock rearing and the collection of non-timber forest produce,” he said.
He stated that over the past years, the community witnessed very low rainfall and recurrent droughts, which negatively impacted most livelihood-supporting activities. Therefore, the project aims to increase resilience of vulnerable communities of the community forest to adapt to climate change threats through collective capacity-building and the promotion of climate-smart sustainable technologies and climate- resilient livelihoods.
The Minister of Environment, Forestry and Tourism Pohamba Shifeta urged the community of Okongo, especially the youth, to proudly safeguard this investment and transform their livelihoods to reduce the number of our young people who are migrating to urban areas hoping for a better life, but in reality, rural economic transformation is the better life.
He said the Okongo Community Forest has great potential to create more employment opportunities through horticultural production, sustainable income-generation and integrated natural resources business ventures through timber processing, bee farming and other forest products.
“We remain steadfast and resolute in the pursuit of our ultimate objectives of economic emancipation and concomitant prosperity. This is realised through rural development investment, the diversification of livelihoods and rural employment-creation amongst our youth in the quest of alleviating poverty,” said the minister.
Also speaking at the occasion, the chairperson of the Okongo Community Forest Martha Kapembe expressed her gratitude towards the EIF for supporting their project.
She said they will remain committed and determined so that the project will last longer for future generations.
“We always receive many customers coming in big numbers to support us, and this gives us confidence to work hard,” Kapembe beamed.
The project has employed two permanent workers and 65 temporary workers, while recording a bumper harvest early this year, generating an income of N$30 000.