ONGWEDIVA – The current drought is marching on relentlessly across the width and breadth of Namibia, leaving scars on the agricultural landscape with every passing day, so much so that a foremost expert in rangeland management and animal health now wants to urgently bring the situation to the attention of the Founding Father of the Nation, Dr Sam Nujoma.
Dr Edmore Masaire, a livestock guru and consultant on the MCA-N-supported Community-Based Rangeland and Livestock Management (CBRLM) Programme – who also runs an animal clinic on the outskirts of Ongwediva, feels very strongly about what is happening on the ground in the northern communal areas.
It is only when you have your feet planted in a wilted mahangu field in the north-central communal areas, where hungry cattle have turned into browsers, that you begin to grasp the magnitude of the drought.
The drought has led many traditional leaders and others to beg for government’s intervention in the form of drought aid.
Communal farmers in Oshikoto, Oshana, Omusati, Kavango, Ohangwena and Kunene regions all have just one message – this could be the worst dry spell in many decades and it is going to take communal and commercial farmers a very long time to recover.
Food insecurity is evident in all the regions and concern is growing. Farmers are now waiting for Cabinet’s decision after the Early Warning and Food Security Unit completed an assessment of the situation on the ground at the end of last month.
There is consensus among producers, headmen, traditional leaders and experts in every field that the deteriorating situation calls for immediate food aid.
Masaire makes no bone about the fact that the recurring drought situations call for a complete revamp of the existing structures within the Ministry of Agriculture, Water and Forestry (MAWF).
“The CBRLM Programme laid the foundations for a new way of thinking when it comes to rangeland management in the same way that conservation agriculture has done for crop farming. We have to build on those solid foundations and the MAWF must get actively involved in improving infrastructure development, water infrastructure and erecting auction pens and even feeding lots and have proper surveillance from the Directorate of Veterinary Services. We need a different mindset to instil good and proper management from ministerial level all the way down to the farmer in the field, if we are to overcome our constant battle against dry spells and drought,” the renowned veterinarian told New Era yesterday.
He says government must do away with subsidising farmers with N$300 per head of cattle like in the drought of 2013 and rather invest in decent management on all levels. “Without proper management, farmers will never learn how to recover their grazing after dry spells and without proper management there will always be a fodder shortage and over-grazing. Government needs to facilitate these needs of farmers in a structural way. Namibian farmers in all sectors must learn how to drive the bus instead of jumping onto the bus,” he notes.
Dr Masaire says he is preparing for a meeting with Dr Nujoma to bring home the message of the communal farmers and inform the Father of the Nation first-hand on the seriousness of the food-stressed communities.
“Many systems within the MAWF and in Namibia in general are disconnected and each dry spell reminds us again that we must get these systems connected to ensure food security and the future of our livestock industry,” he stresses.
“There is a deep desire within the communal farming communities for quality leadership. This drought has woken up the sleeping dogs and it is now time to act in the interest of our future generations. We must drive our own research and government’s extension officers should be on the ground daily and not be office dwellers, if we are to stop the destruction,” he concludes.