Agricultural entrepreneurship in Namibia

• UAPIRAMA KAVARI LITERATURE is replete with evidence of agriculture as a key player in development.

As a traditional (leading) sector of most economies in developing countries, agriculture is regarded as playing a critical role in industrialisation.

The Asian Tiger Economies are clear examples. Not only does agriculture play a role in industrialisation, but it also serves as an important insurer of food security.

This notwithstanding, many African countries do not investment much in agriculture and have even fallen short of meeting the 10% target national expenditure on agriculture agreed in terms of the Comprehensive Africa Agriculture Development Programme (CAADP) adopted by the African Union in 2003 in Mozambique. Namibia has not met this target either. In the same vein, entrepreneurship, a buzzword in the current socio-economic development discourse, is increasingly being recognised as playing a pivotal role in driving and shaping innovation, and bringing greater efficiency to the agriculture sector and other extractive industries.

It is therefore fitting to situate its role in the context of land reform in Namibia. The promotion of entrepreneurship in agriculture, herein referred to as “agripreneurship” (not “tenderpreneurship”), could offer potential solutions to the many challenges besetting the implementation of the land reform programme, so as to enable previously disadvantaged Namibians to improve their livelihoods and standard of living.

However, its implementation outcome has been mixed, according to studies conducted to gauge its impact on beneficiary farmers’ livelihoods, and also going by the myriad of complaints from these farmers. In many instances, the allocated land has not resulted in an improvement of the livelihoods and living standards of beneficiaries.

Farms with great potential have become unproductive and in some instances dilapidated. Farm Ongombo West which used to produce flowers for export, and some units of Farm Hausharibes where beneficiaries complained of desertion by government are examples. These farmers complain that post-settlement support is inadequate.

It seems little is done to promote entrepreneurship in agriculture. More needs to be done to inculcate a culture of entrepreneurship in farmers, especially those benefiting from the national resettlement programme in order to encourage them to act entrepreneurially, particularly in the context of agricultural development.

This is despite recognition by public and private functionaries about entrepreneurship’s potential critical role in Namibia’s economic growth and development.

The Ministry of Land Reform as implementer of the land reform programme should design a holistic framework or model of settlement support, at both the level of pre- and post-settlement, for the successful execution of the resettlement programme.

This could include the provision of: infrastructure; extension services; entrepreneurial skills training; business skills training; technical farming skills training; agricultural sustainability awareness training; mentorship programmes; and most importantly, a monitoring, reporting and evaluation (MRE) system which is executed religiously on a continuous basis.

Whatever the outcome of the envisaged land conference, the above approach could be an enabler in the successful implementation of land reform going forward.

It makes no sense expending public moneys but with no regular impact assessment of the programme on beneficiaries.

Resettlement and agricultural productivity should be mutually inclusive!

The design of such a holistic resettlement programme implementation mechanism should at best involve all stakeholders including government; financial institutions; farmers’ unions; education institutions; and other relevant bodies in order to enrich its content, and also embolden ownership and participation in its implementation.

It is therefore incumbent on all stakeholders to ensure that agriculture in our country benefits from the entrepreneurial spirit. Entrepreneurship should become part and parcel of curricula in secondary schools and tertiary educational institutions.

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