President slams Agribusdev as a failed experiment
Instead of turning state irrigation schemes into commercially viable projects, Agribusdev couldn't even pay salaries.
President Netumbo Nandi-Ndaitwah has laid the blame for the collapse of Namibia’s green schemes squarely at the feet of the defunct parastatal Agribusdev, saying farmers were doing better before it took over their operations.
Speaking at Shadikongoro Green Scheme in Kavango East last Thursday, the president said the decline of projects was “widely felt” once Agribusdev came on board.
“The good thing is that the animal called Agribusdev is now out of the way. Wherever you go, you are told things were working. But when Agribusdev was brought in, everything collapsed,” she remarked.
Nandi-Ndaitwah said even small-scale farmers suffered setbacks.
“One farmer told me that in his first two years he was doing very well, almost graduating to commercial farming. But the moment Agribusdev came in, everything collapsed. Now he feels that they are finally picking up again,” she said.
During the same week, Kavango East governor Hamunyera Hambyuka also visited Shadikongoro, where farm manager Joseph Mutero raised concerns over staff welfare. He said some employees had been stuck in the same positions for eight years without promotion, while many remained on yearly contracts. Others nearing retirement worried about leaving without pensions. Letters seeking clarity on their future had been sent to the agriculture ministry, he said.
Troubled past
Agribusdev – formally the Agricultural Business Development Agency – was established in 2011 to manage the state’s irrigation schemes and turn them into commercially viable projects aimed at boosting food security and creating jobs.
But persistent financial problems, poor management and mounting debts left the institution on its knees. By 2020, it struggled to pay salaries, defaulted on suppliers and produced disappointing outputs.
Government dissolved the entity in 2021 after it racked up millions in debt, shifting its responsibilities – including employee salaries - to the ministry of agriculture.
Signs of recovery
Despite past setbacks, Nandi-Ndaitwah stressed that the schemes are not dead, saying production is gradually improving under new arrangements.
She commended Shadikongoro for showing signs of revival through collaboration between commercial operators and small-scale farmers.
“What I really want to see is maximum use of the green schemes. If we are able to make it on our own, we should. What is coming out clearly is that wastage made our green schemes fail,” she said.
The president further urged the agriculture ministry to prioritise the timely provision of seeds and fertiliser – challenges she said had long undermined progress.
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Speaking at Shadikongoro Green Scheme in Kavango East last Thursday, the president said the decline of projects was “widely felt” once Agribusdev came on board.
“The good thing is that the animal called Agribusdev is now out of the way. Wherever you go, you are told things were working. But when Agribusdev was brought in, everything collapsed,” she remarked.
Nandi-Ndaitwah said even small-scale farmers suffered setbacks.
“One farmer told me that in his first two years he was doing very well, almost graduating to commercial farming. But the moment Agribusdev came in, everything collapsed. Now he feels that they are finally picking up again,” she said.
During the same week, Kavango East governor Hamunyera Hambyuka also visited Shadikongoro, where farm manager Joseph Mutero raised concerns over staff welfare. He said some employees had been stuck in the same positions for eight years without promotion, while many remained on yearly contracts. Others nearing retirement worried about leaving without pensions. Letters seeking clarity on their future had been sent to the agriculture ministry, he said.
Troubled past
Agribusdev – formally the Agricultural Business Development Agency – was established in 2011 to manage the state’s irrigation schemes and turn them into commercially viable projects aimed at boosting food security and creating jobs.
But persistent financial problems, poor management and mounting debts left the institution on its knees. By 2020, it struggled to pay salaries, defaulted on suppliers and produced disappointing outputs.
Government dissolved the entity in 2021 after it racked up millions in debt, shifting its responsibilities – including employee salaries - to the ministry of agriculture.
Signs of recovery
Despite past setbacks, Nandi-Ndaitwah stressed that the schemes are not dead, saying production is gradually improving under new arrangements.
She commended Shadikongoro for showing signs of revival through collaboration between commercial operators and small-scale farmers.
“What I really want to see is maximum use of the green schemes. If we are able to make it on our own, we should. What is coming out clearly is that wastage made our green schemes fail,” she said.
The president further urged the agriculture ministry to prioritise the timely provision of seeds and fertiliser – challenges she said had long undermined progress.
[email protected]
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