By Deon Schlechter
WINDHOEK – The average household in communal areas in the seven northern regions is likely to run out of grain by the end of this month, according to a jolting report on the conditions of households among subsistence farmers.
The authors of the report thus ask the regional councils, with the assistance of traditional leaders, to monitor the weakening household food security situation in their respective areas in the seven regions of the north and north-east of the country.
Regional councils have also been requested to identify community members facing food insecurity and provide information to the Directorate of Disaster Risk Management for possible assistance.
The National Early Warning and Food Information Unit (NEWFIU) released the report last week, expressing grave concern about the developing food insecurity. It warns that household food security is weakening and grazing conditions are also deteriorating fast in the absence of good rains since October last year.
The report serves as a barometer of expectations regarding total crop produce in the seven regions. It was compiled at the end of December 2014.
Last season’s harvest is weakening and is currently being supplemented with market purchases. Their little harvest is likely to last up to the end of this month.
The report recommends that due to the possibility of below normal rainfall in January up to March in the communal crop producing areas, the Directorate of Extension should advise farmers to take the necessary precautions to avoid delays in cultivation and take full advantage of the first rainfall and the use of early maturity crop varieties.
The report makes it clear that rain prospects for the coming months might be below normal.
It also advises the timely provision of sufficient availability of basic inputs especially seeds at the agricultural development centres for farmers’ easy access.
“Servicing of government tractors, especially in Oshana and Oshikoto regions, should be expedited and treated as a matter of urgency to reduce the delay in ploughing services,” the report stresses.
On the positive side, the report states that basic inputs and services are in place in most communal regions at the start of the agricultural season. Improved and enough seeds for mahangu, sorghum and maize have been reported in Zambezi, Kavango West and Kavango East. However, the north-central regions reported they received only about a quarter of their annual seed requirements at the time the report was compiled.
According to the report, grazing conditions in various parts of the seven regions have deteriorated and range between fair and poor.
Grazing conditions are expected to improve after receiving some good showers in December.
While the NEWFIU report is sceptical about normal to above normal rainfall for Namibia in general, the south-western areas of the continent including south-western Angola, western Namibia and western South Africa were given higher chances of receiving above normal to normal rainfall in the October-December and January-March forecasts by various independent forecasters.