By: Kandjengo Mkwaanyoka
Last month, I visited my home, and every evening my grandmother asked us to pray for rain and behave well so that the ancestors would bless us with a better season.
This has been a normal practice since my childhood. Granny, a firm believer in Kalunga kaNangobe, always looks to the skies, hoping for rain.
However, after attending numerous climate change-related gatherings, I wanted to explain to Granny that prayers and ancestral guidance need a different interpretation in this context.
I wished to tell her to pray for our policymakers to be inspired by the ancestors to channel funds into irrigation infrastructure. Unfortunately, I couldn’t say it, so we prayed for the entire week.
Back in Windhoek, I write this in the hope that someone in a position of influence will read it.
As drought ravages our country, causing hunger and livestock loss, what is our mitigation strategy or future solution?
Amid malnutrition, dying children, and worsening food insecurity, I pay close attention to the proposed solutions and government actions.
From the Office of the Prime Minister, the Ministry of Agriculture, and the Ministry of Finance, I don’t see a unified approach to addressing this climate change-induced crisis.
There appears to be no comprehensive strategy to tackle food insecurity and reduce dependence on rain (I welcome corrections if I am wrong).
Yes, we built a massive dam in the south, allocated a small budget for boreholes here and there, and distributed drought relief food (procured from outside).
But what is our national strategy to strengthen our agricultural sector and reduce its dependence on rainfall?
I anticipate my colleagues from my favourite ministry might argue that they were in Oshana, Ohangwena, Oshikoto, and the two Kavango regions inaugurating water infrastructure projects with NamWater.
However, the question remains: Is this infrastructure for commercial use or merely potable water?
Does it include irrigation systems for small to medium-sized gardens to grow crops year-round, or will we need to expand it later?
There are numerous questions when you consider the budget allocated to green schemes and the Neckartal Dam development.
It makes one wonder if Minister Shiimi and his advisors, or even the entire parliament, realise that children are dying of hunger.
If we are serious about solving food insecurity and understand the drought’s causes, the Ministry of Agriculture should be the most funded ministry.
Currently, we are heavily funding the Ministry of Health so people can buy medication instead of ensuring access to affordable, nutritious food.
Billions are going to PSEMAS as the population’s health declines. While we have borrowed for water infrastructure, we haven’t intentionally de-risked the agricultural sector from rain dependence; thus, our approach is still focused on providing drinking water.
Agribank, how much have you lent for water infrastructure in the past five years?
Our investment in water infrastructure to de-risk the agricultural sector at the commercial level is proof of our commitment. We don’t just drink water to survive, do we, Minister Calle?
For example, in the Zambezi region, which has plenty of water, there is no active irrigation scheme producing grain to feed the country.
This indicates that we are not deliberately solving our hunger issues, leaving us vulnerable to drought-driven food insecurity despite having ample water sources.
Animal feed prices are exorbitantly high because we do not produce enough yellow maize, a main ingredient.
Instead of advising farmers to sell off all their animals, we should be producing enough yellow maize and lucerne at our 12 green schemes to sustain some livestock for the next season.
Currently, after each drought, we wait two years to restock, causing meat prices and other protein supplies to skyrocket.
Every year, we repeat the same strategy: go to South Africa, buy drought relief food, and advise farmers to liquidate their livestock.
Minister Naanda, Minister Saara, Minister Shiimi, and Minister Calle, is this strategy sustainable?
We need to strengthen the agricultural sector by investing in water infrastructure that can reduce our dependence on rain for crop farming.
The Ministry of Agriculture has bought drilling equipment and some tractors, which is a good start.
Now, engage with Minister Alweendo to address the issue of high electricity costs that shut down green schemes in the Kavango regions.
Modern agriculture is energy-intensive, and we need affordable electricity to sustain it.
My ancestors have carried us long enough; it’s time to use our brains and budgets to solve our problems.
According to the AfDB, the agricultural sector is 60% less productive than the overall economy, trapping many African workers in low-productivity roles and poverty.
An agro-led structural transformation should be integral to Africa’s development strategy, especially given the continent’s vast agricultural potential and growing food demand driven by the middle class and climate change-induced drought.
Africa has over 65% of the globally available land for cultivation, providing a strong basis for developing an agriculture-based industrial policy.
However, the sector’s current state is characterised by low uptake of modern inputs, weak mechanisation, lack of access to credit and finance, insufficient farmer skills, inadequate land-tenure systems, and a lack of strong linkages with other sectors.
Once we are done with laws on sodomy, marriage, and other issues, can our parliament please focus on agriculture?
If you are a policymaker or an advisor to policymakers, you can reach Kandjengo for fruitful engagement at gerastus16@gmail.com.