WINDHOEK – Swapo Party Youth League (SPYL) secretary Ephraim Nekongo feels the time has come that government start buying goods locally instead of importing them and essentially exporting jobs at the expense of Namibians.
Nekongo took swipe at some government ministries, especially the Ministry of Poverty Eradication and Social Welfare that he blasted for importing the food that is being distributed by government to needy households.
Nekongo spoke out against the importation of food and other goods at the expense of local producers and farmers who have to keep up with South African producers. He spoke at a press conference convened by the youth league at Swapo Party headquarters.
He feels the ministry of Poverty Eradication and Social Welfare should empower local providers, instead of purchasing food from big retailers in South Africa.
“I call upon the ministry of poverty eradication to stop with the importation of food for the food bank. They must procure locally produced food, and if such food is not locally available, the ministry must with immediate effect invest in the capacities for local production of such products,’’ he stressed.
He noted though the ministry is spearheading the food bank programme which was established in 2016 by President Hage Geingob, it should support local producers.
Nekongo called on all ministries that procure goods and services to provide leadership by supporting local producers and farmers.
He is of the opinion simple products such as eggs, meat, vegetables, toilet paper and chalk should not be imported but should rather be purchased locally.
He made reference to Samuel Nepunda, a millet farmer in the north who could not easily find a market for his produce and has been in limbo over unsold huge stockpile of millet.
His produce was however recently bought by the Agro-Marketing and Trading Agency (Amta).
Nekongo also called on the Ministry of Agriculture, Water and Forestry to provide leadership toward the plight of small-scale farmers as well as government’s irrigation projects that are dormant or semi-dormant.
’’We call on the Ministry of Agriculture, Water and Forestry to genuinely drive sustainable agricultural transformation in our country,’’ he concluded.