By:Nghiinomenwa-vali Erastus
Namibia has 252 vacancies for agricultural scientific officers and technicians all over the country, said the Ministry of Agriculture, Water and Land Reform.
The Ministry has 147 Agriculture Development Centres (ADCs) around the country that offer technical and advisory services.
Spokesperson in the MinistryJona Musheko said the agricultural sector is a source of livelihood for the majority of the country’s populace, and that extension services arecrucial to contributing toward poverty alleviation and sustainable development in the country.
“The dissemination of information and implementation of projects are conducted through the extension workers at constituency level,” Mushekoexplained.
He said extension services havebeen hindered by limited transport and continuous under-budgeting.
Musheko indicated there are 178 vacant positions out of 316 agriculture technician levels. A total of 41 positions have been advertised, leaving a difference of 137.
Of the 25 positions that became vacant during this financial year are due to retirement, promotion and resignation.
Musheko indicated that the Ministry has requested additional funds to fill the 79 technician posts.
Asked if the Ministryis satisfied with the work of the extension workers, Musheko pointed out that thesupport services provided to the local communities by the extension workers have yielded positive results over the years.
To complement the work of the extension officers, the Ministry has continuously facilitated staff development and capacity building of farmers through training and staff development programmes.
During the Fifth National Development Plan period 2016-22, the Ministry capacitated a total of 289,112 farmers in crop production (crop rotation, mixed cropping, organic and artificial fertilisers use, land preparation, planting techniques, calculation of plant population and yield estimation).
Also included in the training were nursery and seed bed preparation, compost making and liquid fertiliser, vegetable calendar, importance of drip Iirigation system, soil fertility, pricing and marketing were also included.
Furthermore, the Ministry provided training in integrated pest management, fertiliser application (basal and top dressing), horticulture production, conservation agriculture principles, fertilisers application, Planting, Pest management and compost making.
As for livestock production extensions and producers were trained in castration, dehorning, branding, age determination, bull selection, small stock production and hoof trimming,
Some training also involved hydroponic fodder production, drought medication and preparedness, chicken feed and hygiene, supplementary feeding, fodder preparation and mixing and range land management.
The Ministry noted that capacity building alone cannot improve the agricultural performance in rural communities.
It has developed various subsidy programmes that complement the efforts of the farmers. These programmes are aimed at increasing food production and productivity along the value chains thereby enhancing food security and creating resilience to climate change. Email: erastus@thevillager.com.na
