Strengthening rural communities

On Friday, 30 September, environment minister Pohamba Shifeta officiated the handover of the Otjmboyo Resilience Horticultural Project, funded under community-based natural resource management (CBNRM) under the Empower to Adapt (EDA) project that is implemented through the Environmental Investment Fund of Namibia (EIF).

Situated in the Daures Constituency in the Erongo Region, the Otjimboyo project was funded at the cost of N$1,7 million under the climate resilient agriculture investment window under the EDA project, which is centred around creating climate change resilient livelihoods through the CBNRM EDA project.

The project implemented by Otjimboyo conservancy is aimed at strengthening the adaptive capacity and climate change resilience of communities in the conservancy by improving water and food security of the vulnerable communities.

To date, the project has a functional solar hydroponic system that has been successfully established with a 76 000-litre dam constructed on site.

Fresh produce

In addition, the project has established a fertigation room, office space, a storeroom, and ablution facilities on site. Its site is electrically fenced off to deter elephant destruction, with 0.7 hectares of greenhouse under cultivation. Recording its bumper harvest early this year, it has distributed its first harvest to the senior citizens in the conservancy. The project has also successfully converted diesel pump boreholes into solar-powered pumps for the village.

Conservancy chairperson, Theofelius Naruseb, highlighted the history of the conservancy and indicted that the resilience horticultural project was set up to address issues of food security in their community to avoid depending on handouts from government and also ensuring water softening that will benefit not only the community but the garden as well.

He ended his welcoming remarks by saying this is a community project and that community members must benefit. "I am proud to say that we have shared fresh produce from the garden with the elderly as a way of ensuring that our members derive from the benefits of their project," he said.

Expand

Delivering a special statement, EIF CEO Benedict Libanda, said "we are extremely proud of the work that we are seeing here today. This commitment to the success of this project will go a long way and will serve as an example to others."

He said the fund will further engage its developmental partners to see projects of this magnitude be expanded and improve food security as this can greatly improve the lives of the community of the Otjimboyo conservancy.

Shifeta said that "in order for our economy to blossom, we have to invest in small and medium-scale producers, especially by mobilising them to stop producing for their immediate family needs alone, but make sure to adopt a business-like attitude to production and view their activities as commercial ones that can substantially increase their earnings and improve their livelihoods. If this can be achieved, we will have begun to seriously address the problem of hunger, malnutrition, poverty and food shortages in general."

Shifeta said that while this project was successfully implemented, it is important that the nation gauges the issue of market access for horticultural production, environmental sustainability, and social economic development.

He concluded by stressing to farming communities the importance of diversifying their production systems and adapting to climate change. "Small farmers have the potential to contribute significantly to national food security as well as the national economic growth of this country. It is in our best interest to foster conservation of our natural resources through a community-based natural resource management system as established by the Ministry of Environment, Forestry and Tourism," he said.