Agricultural policy reforms lined up

This was announced by the minister of agriculture, water and land reform Calle Schlettwein when he delivered a keynote address at the agricultural outlook conference in Windhoek last week.

“At the policy level, the Water Resources Management Act (Act No. 11 of 2013) is being reviewed and a set of draft regulations are being considered to operationalise the act,” he said.

The minister said about 60% of potable water for household and industrial use in Namibia is ground water.

“This water source is to be optimally utilised and effectively guarded to serve the country and the future generations better,” Schlettwein said.

He added that to safeguard the quality of ground water, the policy position is that no harmful mineral exploration, drilling and in-situ leaching activities shall occur in aquifers.

“This is particularly the case for the current proposed exploration drilling activities in the Stampriet area and any other aquifer areas,” he said.

According to the minister, the Meat Industry Amendment Act is due for consideration by the Cabinet Committee on Legislation, after principle clearance by Cabinet.

This would strengthen the implementation of the poultry market share scheme and support the revival of the dairy industry, he said.

The minister also disclosed that the legal drafting of the land bill has been finalised, following an intensive consultation process to incorporate the key considerations from the second land conference.

“This enables the submission of the bill to the policy clearance and legislative process going forward. At the same time, the criteria for land resettlement are reviewed and the stakeholder consultation process is now the next step,” the minister said.

The minister said productive utilisation of the resettlement farms will be embedded as a necessary condition for the land resettlement programme and that the ministry, in collaboration with the stakeholders, is spearheading the review of the 1997 Drought Policy, to strengthen the country’s preparedness, adaptation and resilience architecture.

According to Schlettwein, the formulation of the National Agricultural Investment Plan has been advanced and underperformance by key institutions in the sector needs to be urgently addressed to realise value and serve farmers better.

“This is in specific reference to Meatco business sustainability and its market outreach to all the farmers, particularly in the northern communal areas and the Agro-Marketing and Trade Agency’s role to better support increasing market access for agronomic and horticulture products, particularly for small holders,” said the minister.

Meatco recently reported incurring a pre-tax loss of N$206 million in its latest annual financial results last week as a result of Namibia’s recent drought period and the company was given a government bailout of N$200 million.

The minister said land reform remains at the centre of correcting the skewed land ownership that was used to unjustly dispossess land from black Namibians by the colonial regimes.

“A land reform aiming at eroding the existing skewness in land ownership compelled with a resettlement policy that ensures productivity on resettlement farms, is an absolute necessity. We believe that a performance management evaluation needs to be introduced into resettlement to ensure that those who benefit from it are indeed utilising the productive capacities of the land optimally.”

Email: matthew@namibian.com.na