By Wezi Tjaronda
WINDHOEK
Some households in crop producing areas are depending on the market for food and social grants for orphans and pensioners due to dwindling food reserves.
Following poor harvests in the 2006/7 season, most parts of the Kavango Region face acute food shortages.
Although the hardest hit are the Kahenge Constituency in the Kavango Region and Olukonda in the Oshikoto Region, communities such as Mundaungilo, Endola, Ondangwa, Onyanya and Onayena are also affected as food stocks are severely depleted. Communities are resorting to the market to buy food.
This information is contained in the Agricultural Inputs and Food Security Situation Report released last Friday by the Namibia Early Warning and Food Information Unit.
“However, the food situation continues to worsen as most households indicated their inability to meet their daily calorie intake and hence rely primarily on sharing with those who have Orphan and Vulnerable Children (OVC) assistance from the Government,” said the report.
In Okaku Constituency in the Oshana Region, the report said, the general household food security is satisfactory except that some households face possible starvation.
There is concern the situation might worsen as many households find it difficult to access adequate quantities of food.
The report said this precarious situation follows poor harvests last season, which have led to inadequate food stocks.
The hardest hit is the Kavango Region where the report said many households have used up their carry- over stock from previous harvests.
Many of the affected have resorted to selling wild fruits/grass, casual labour and to fishing to buy food.
Kahenge Constituency Councillor, Joseph Shikongo, said there has been no response from the Government yet concerning food relief despite their registering the names of the affected people.
New Era could not get information from the Emergency Management Unit whether food relief would be distributed because “all the senior people are on leave”.
The situation in other regions such as the Caprivi and north-central regions is satisfactory as most households interviewed indicated their food stocks would take them to the next harvest.
The report said insufficient rainfall coupled with damage by red-billed quellea birds led to poor harvests in most crop producing regions.
While this is the case, prospects for 2007/8 do not look good in some regions because of lack of improved seeds for many farmers following poor harvest last season.
“Although many farmers store and use own traditional seeds, last season’s harvest could not allow them to harvest and store good quality seeds due to low rainfall, floods and damage by wild animals,” said the report.
Shortage of seed in the Caprivi Region might hamper crop production for the 2007/8 cropping season as the Likwama Farmers Coop failed to supply seed to the farmers on time.
The Likwama Farmers Coop ordered 25 tonnes of improved seed from Kamano Seed Company in Zambia, which has not yet arrived.
The consignment consists of maize, pearl millet and sorghum seed.
Shortages of seed, draught power, tractors and fertiliser were reported in almost all the regions that the assessment team visited.