WINDHOEK – Namibia is a country with a very low risk profile for investments and a solid rating for market opportunities, and now is the time for the country to join forces with partners outside its borders and drive the economic revolution of the agricultural industry.
This was the message by financial and agriculture expert Jacques Taylor, the managing director of John Deere for Southern Africa at the start of the 67th annual congress of the Namibia Agricultural Union yesterday morning in Windhoek.
Taylor said that, according to a recent World Bank report, Namibia rated as the fifth safest country regarding risk profiles out of 54 countries in Africa. Namibia fetched 31st place on the list when it comes to marketing opportunities, and this is obviously a sector that should be of high priority if Namibia wants to join the industrial revolution worldwide, he stressed.
Taylor said Namibia boasts a very stable economy, even though it is a small economy. “The time, however, has come for Namibia to look further than its borders for export opportunities. The pressure is on the agricultural sector to produce more with less.” He told the audience that Africa’s consumer spending will be some US$1.4 trillion and 128 million people will have discretionary income. By 2040, some 1.1 billion Africans will be of working age.
“In 2013, eight of the world’s fastest growing economies came from Africa. The middle class in Sub-Saharan Africa is set to double in eight years, increasing consumer spending as well as assisting to grow the economies of the region by 5.4 percent this year, higher than the predicted world average of 3.5 percent. The middle class population is set to hit 626 million by 2020 and 1.232 billion by 2030,” he said.
He said the African growth model clearly shows the four different phases of growth, that includes establishing a competitive position to grow, defend and unlock potential, proximating regional expansion and entailing the multiregional expansion with multiple hubs, leverage growth and developing scalable infrastructure. The fourth phase is the integrated pan-Africa system with pan-African management, infrastructure and risk management.
Namibia’s agricultural sector will be discussed in great depth at both the congresses over the next few days. Although agriculture’s contribution to the Namibian GDP seems relatively small compared to some other sectors like mining and tourism, it is an important sector in terms of employment opportunities. About 29 percent of the total population of the country indicates subsistence farming as their main source of income, while in rural areas the corresponding figure jumps to 48 percent. Agricultural product exports contribute roughly 10.7 percent to the total Namibian exports. Furthermore, agriculture provides inputs for agro-industries, in particular meat processing, milling and beverages, hence contributing to secondary employment creation.
Agriculture is the engine of economic growth and agricultural growth is the cornerstone of poverty reduction. The strategic importance of agriculture is recognised in the Fourth National Development Plan (NDP4) and the Namibian Industry Policy.
National, regional and international delegates from governments, producer organisations, agriculture businesses, agro-industries and other interested role players from various agricultural backgrounds are attending the congress.
By Deon Schlechter