The past rainy season was below average and the resultant poor grazing is a matter of grave concern to livestock farmers in the northern regions.

They are encouraged to sell the animals that are still in fairly good condition or risk losing them to the drought like what happened four years ago (in 2019).

However, the plea to sell always falls on deaf ears as mass selling of cattle is still considered by some as “untraditional”.

Simon Amunyela, a 76-year-old cattle farmer from Omusati’s Oshivada shaNghatanga community, said that the lack of appropriate rainfall has put his herd’s access to water and grazing land in peril.

He indicated that they are currently relocating their animals into Angola to graze.

“The earth dam that we have serves five communities, but we did not receive enough rainfall in our area,” he said.

He continued by saying that several wells are currently getting deeper because they did not receive enough water this year.

Amunyela cited that this would only get worse as long as the government kept asking them to sell their cattle, without empowering them.

He claimed that the government always wants to purchase their cattle for N.dollars 2 000 to N.dollars 3 000, even though that is below the animal’s market value.

“How do we market? The government has been urging farmers to sell for all those years, but nothing has been done to help us,” he added.

He said that if they are to sell their cattle, they would no longer be able to own any and that the selling price for the animals was absurd.

Another, Elly Natangwe, 55, from the Okankolo area stated that they frequently have to purchase animal feed to feed their animals owing to a lack of grazing pasture and also had to go a distance to find water for their cattle.

Depending on the buyer, the cost of the fodder ranges from N.dollars 10 to N.dollars 50 per item.

As the wells in the area have completely dried up, Natangwe said that the closest usable earth dams were roughly 7km from their homestead.

“The drought has had a significant impact on our livestock, they are suffering, and the amount of available grazing land has decreased,” said Natangwe.

Ministry of Agriculture, Water and Land Reform spokesperson Jona Musheko, said it has been always their plea for farmers to market their livestock while the animal’s body is still good.

“It is for this reason that Government for many years introduced drought intervention measures that are aimed at assisting farmers to transport their livestock to marketing places (auctions and abattoirs), to new grazing areas,” he said.

He added that the programme has started in July already.

The ministry extended its livestock support programme to drought stricken regions such as Kunene, parts of Erongo, and Omusati.

Musheko said that they also provide livestock support programmes to drought stricken regions of Omaheke, Hardap and ||Kharas for six months from 01 July 2023 to 31 December 2023; this is according to Cabinet decisions issued at the 7th decision making meeting.

Source: NAMPA