Declaration of a National Drought Emergency

10 May 2019

 

Deputy Executive Director in the Ministry of Agriculture, Water and Forestry’s Department of Agricultural Development, Sophia Kasheeta

 

The Namibian government declared a national state of emergency with respect to drought that has hit several areas in the country.

A statement from the presidency said: “The State of Emergency exists on account of the natural disaster of drought in all regions of the Republic of Namibia.”

“Offices, Ministries and Agencies and all other stakeholders will be mobilized to ensure that the necessary assistance is rolled out to affected communities,” the statement added.

The government has this month confirmed that it will subsidise farmers who reduce their herds as part of its drought intervention.

Deputy Executive Director in the Ministry of Agriculture, Water and Forestry’s Department of Agricultural Development, Sophia Kasheeta, said the ministry will give marketing incentives to farmers who want to sell their livestock to encourage them to reduce the numbers.

Kasheeta added that they would pay N$80 per head of small stock, and N$400 per head of large stock sold. However, the ministry said the government would only pay the subsidy for up to 100 livestock units per farmer.

One of the initiatives the ministry was implementing  as a drought relief intervention was the provision of water tankers to communities with no alternative sources of water in all regions, except the Khomas region. The water tankers would benefit 10,000 households.

The Ministry would also rehabilitate and restore boreholes in all regions. Farmers adversely affected will also benefit from lick supplements.