Published December 02, 2011 13:59
The Meatco Board of Directors handed over the Operational Structure and Legal Framework for its ownership on 30 November 2011 to the Honourable Minister of Agriculture, Water and Forestry, John Mutorwa, as per his request in a letter to the Board on 03 October 2011. The preferred structure is designed in accordance with Cabinet Directive Number 11th/05.07.11/003.
The structure includes a Co-operative, wholly owned by participating Namibian livestock producers, as holding entity with a public company as whole-owned Operating and Trading Company. The principle that underpins the proposed structure is the fact that the co-operative and Operating and trading Company will operate in accordance with existing Namibian legislation governing the respective entities (i.e. the Co-operatives Act, 1996 (Act 23 of 1996) as well as the Companies Act, 2004(Act 28 of 2004)).
The design of the agreed structure follows on the General Meeting called by Meatco members on 14 October 2011 at Wanderers Sports Fields where a group of over 200 farmers, representing all farmer groups, voted for a representative group of stakeholders to meet and prepare the preferred Operational Structure and Legal Framework on Meatco’s ownership as requested by the Honourable Minister of Agriculture, Water and Forestry.
The representative group met over a period of 5 weeks and, through an independently facilitated process supported by specialists in Constitutional Law, Co-operative Law, Company Law and Corporate Governance, debated and charted their future in a process they themselves describe as transparent and consultative and under which they could reach consensus on all the issues discussed.
The working group consisted of:
- 5 representatives from the Namibian agricultural unions, namely Namibia Emerging Commercial Farmers Union (“NECFU”); the Namibia National Farmers Union (“NNFU”) and the Namibia Agriculture Union (“NAU”);
- 3 representatives of Meatco members from the communal farming areas north of the Veterinary Cordon Fence;
- 2 representatives of Meatco members from the communal farming areas south of the Veterinary Cordon Fence; and
- 2 Representatives of Meatco members from the commercial farming areas across the country.
To read an extract of the said report submitted to the Minister of Agriculture, Water and Forestry, please click here.
Watch this short video with feedback from workgroup members regarding the process.