Aina Simon

OSHAKATI – The water crisis in the Uuvudhiya grazing areas will soon be an issue of the past after the Oshana Regional Council, in collaboration with the Rural Water Supply Department, secured 10 water tanks from the Office of the Prime Minister. 
Five of the water tanks and several water troughs earmarked for Uuvudhiya grazing areas will provide a temporary water solution where there is grazing but no water, and this is additional to the water that is being pumped by NamWater from Olushandja Dam via Etaka Cannal to Uuvudhiya which is about 3km away. 
On Wednesday, Oshana Regional Council leadership convened a meeting in Oshakati with farmers and cattle owners to decide on where to locate the temporary water tanks in the grazing areas and farmers decided that the water tanks be located at Omushimba Apakwa, Uusaati waTaandela, Ovenduka, at an area between No. 8 and No. 9, and in an area between Omapopo, Onampugulu and Onoolongo.
Speaking at the meeting Matheus Mutumbulwa, from Oshana Rural Water Supply, indicated that the government will be transporting water with trucks to the temporary locations in the grazing areas at no cost in order to mitigate the drought faced by animal farmers.
“Currently farmers are not required to pay for water consumption at these temporary water sources, however they must take care of the tanks and troughs,” said Mutumbulwa. 
At the same meeting the chief regional officer for Oshana, Martin Elago, indicated that the region had initially requested assistance from central  government to fund the pumping of water from Olushandja Dam to Uuvudhiya grazing area, which was done; also to fund the extension of water pipelines further in the grazing areas which is still to be done as it requires a lot of money and time. 
“We need an immediate solution while the government is putting everything in place to extend water to the grazing area,” said Elago who called on farmers to prepare for digging work as there will not be enough funds to hire contractors to extend the pipelines to the grazing areas.
Farmers further proposed other areas such as Otjiwarunda, Iitulu, Onangwena and Eloolo for future consideration when resources become available as temporary water points. They also called on government to mark the water tanks and troughs.
* Aina Simon works for Ministry of Information and Communication Technology’s Oshana regional office.