Nuusita Ashipala
Uuvudhiya - Farmers at Uuvudhiya fear that grazing will be depleted if no rain is received soon.
Their sentiments were shared by their constituency councillor Timotheus Shivute, who said about 60% of the grazing area was destroyed by veld fires last year.
He added that farmers from neigbouring regions continue to flock to the area in search of better grazing, and if it doesn’t rain soon, there will be no grazing and water left for all the livestock.
The first farmers from other regions started moving into the constituency in November last year.
Uuvudhiya is known for its good grazing, and continues to attract a number of farmers.
Shivute said the farmers have erected temporary shelters, and keep moving further into the constituency. Cattle herders in the Ondulu yomongwa area complained that they have not received a single drop of rain.
“We have water, but the grazing will soon be depleted,” said a cattle herder, who did not wish to be identified.
Eliakim Negumbo, who arrived at Uuvudhiya just a week ago, said his cattle are starting to look better.
He said the situation at his home village of Onkani is far worse, and he was forced to move.
“This is the third place where I have settled since I came here a week ago, but the livestock’s condition has already started to improve. Where we came from, the grazing area is as white as that road,” Negumbo stated.
In addition to the depleting grazing, Shivute said the area might also experience water shortages because communities do not pay their water bills.
“If the situation persists, the water might be cut off,” he continued.
There are water points put up around the constituency, but farmers have not been paying.
Shivute said some water points owe NamWater over N$700 000, emanating from the previous years. Several meetings were held with the farmers, but they have not been forthcoming.
“With farmers coming into the area, the situation is sometimes difficult to control as some even go as far as breaking the installed padlocks. Other water point committees are doing a great job in ensuring that people pay their water bills,” he continued.
In areas where it rained, such as Oponona, farmers have already started ploughing their crop fields.
In the quest to ensure that the whole constituency has access to water, Shivute said there is work ongoing to excavate an earth dam at Uukanga in the Iipumbu ya Shilongo conservancy for both livestock and wild animals.
*Nuusita Ashipala is an information officer in the Ministry of Information and Communication Technology in the Oshana region.