By Albertina Nakale
WINDHOEK – The level of grain reserves levels in the four storage silos is now standing at 18 900 metric tonnes, said Meke Uushona, the Corporate Branding and Promotion Officer for the government’ Agri-Trade Marketing and Trade Agency (AMTA).
The country’s National Strategic Food Reserve (NSFR) silos were almost emptied during the drought relief programme, she said. AMTA is currently buying grains or cereals to replenish the NSFR stock and more than 50 percent of this is currently filled up.
Moreover, Uushona said Namibia should feel proud at this stage because the government worked hard to make sure that food security concerns become a thing of the past.
From the last drought relief programme which kicked off late 2012, “all food was 100 percent drawn from our own country via the National Food Reserve Strategy which is a government project under the Ministry of Agriculture, water and forestry,” she disclosed.
Namibia is normally a net importer of food, however, AMTA emphasised that no food was imported for the purpose of the drought emergency.