By:UakuturaKambaekua
Kunene’s Directorate of Veterinary Services, recently hosted a farmer’s engagement day.
An inter-ministerial team consisting of staff members from the Directorate of Veterinary Services and the Directorate of Agricultural Production, Extension and Engineering Service in the Kunene region – all in the ministry of agriculture, water and land reform,in conjunction with the Eleventh European Development Fund (EDF 11) in Northern Communal Area (NCAs) formed part of the engagement.
The Directorate of Veterinary Services made the event accessible by visiting farmers in Otuani, Etanga, Okangwati and Opuwo last week to share information and engage farmers on ways to improve their economic conditions through advanced farming techniques in livestock marketing, farm management and folder production.
Kunene region has been battling the worst drought over the past 10 years which has wiped out almost 90% of the region’s livestock, leaving farmers in destitution while forcing others to migrate to towns in search of other means of survival.
Kunene’s Agricultural Scientific Officer, Ngujama Tjorora, told this publication recently that a week-long farmers’ engagement day ended in fruitful discussions in the four selected areas that were hard hit by the enduring drought.
“We had a wonderful week with the farmers where we engaged on different topics by sharing information, and attending to questions and problems our farmers are facing. This was the first information day, and we are planning more farmers’ training sessions, information days and exchange visits,” Tjirora explained.
The chief motive of the engagement, Tjiorora further explained, was to bring their service closer to the people, a gesture they intend to stretch to other parts of the region in future.
“The purpose of these meetings was to share paramount information with the farmers since most of our farmers are very far from the office,” he noted.
The information day topics varied from livestock suitable for the environment, administration at the office level, subsidy projects that are up and running under the Directorate of Agricultural Production, Extension and Engineering Service, including the introduction of the 11th European Development Fund Livestock Support Programme which aims to have a long-term and positive impact on the standard of living of rural families in the Northern Communal Areas, by creating more job and income opportunities, chiefly for the youth and women.
Furthermore, Tjirora stated that the officials also shared diversified general information on farming which included farm management (all animal husbandry practices), the organic production knowledge required for decoding livestock feed and supplements and how to meet the nutritional needs of livestock.
Rangeland Management, Fodder Production and Livestock Marketing were also among other topics discussed.
Farmers in Kunene has been benefiting from the Livestock Support Programme in the Northern Communal Areas (LSP) of Namibia, funded by the EU through the Eleventh 11th European Development Fund (EDF 11).
The overall objective of the LSP is to promote entrepreneurship and enhance the livelihood of NCAs livestock farming communities sustainably while improving the performance of the livestock value chain in the NCA.
The programme further aims to improve the performance of the livestock value chain in the NCA. Eight (8) regions in the NCAs willbenefit from the programme: Kunene (North of Veterinary Cordon Fence), Omusati, Oshana, Oshikoto, Ohangwena, Kavango West, KavangoEast, and Zambezi.
Kunene Hosts Farmers’Engagement Day
