Aussenkehr workers still having it rough

DESPITE the millions of dollars being generated from grapes produced in the South of Namibia, the workers harvesting the grapes still live in a sorry state at the Aussenkehr settlement.

Namibian grape farms are situated on the banks of the Orange River in the Karas Region and this is where thousands of Namibians, most of them from the northern regions of the country, migrate to in search of employment during the harvesting season. The seasonal workers mainly migrate to Aussenkehr during the months of November and December.

The Aussenkehr settlement which is home to close to 17 000 people who are mainly workers on the grape farms still does not have adequate housing and sanitation. Major irrigation feeds water the commercial grape vineyards, yet people living at Aussenkehr struggle to get by with no proper water supply.

The huts which house the families are made out of reeds gathered from the banks of the Orange River. Namibia Farm Workers Union (NAFWU) Secretary General, Alfred Angula, said the workers have been waiting to get proper housing for too long and as a result many of them are put at risk. “It is easy for the huts to burn and possibly kill people,” said Angula.

To make matters worse, seasonal and part-time workers at the Aussenkehr settlement might still have a long wait ahead of them before the settlement is officially proclaimed a town, bringing with it benefits such as proper water supply infrastructure. It was estimated in 2007 that close to 17 000 people lived on privately owned land at the settlement but could not set up proper housing as the land did not belong to them.

When Namibian Sun contacted the Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of Regional and Local Government, Housing and Rural Development Erastus Negonga, he was in the Karas Region visiting the area. Negonga said the process to declare the settlement as town will not happen overnight as it is normally a lengthy operation. “We are currently at the final stage and are busy finalising the water infrastructure at Aussenkehr,” said Negonga.

He said that once the water issue is sorted out, Aussenkehr will be proclaimed a town. Despite Negonga’s assurances that the project is in its final stages, Angula said the process was taking too long and the people mostly affected were the workers. Negonga also said the land which was previously privately owned by a farmer had been donated to the Government but Angula said the land has not been officially handed over yet as the owner wants ‘some benefits’ before he can officially hand over the land.

Expecting the workers living at Aussenkehr to contribute to the development of the area is also unrealistic as their earnings are used to support their families back home in the North as well as other basic necessities including paying school fees for their children. Amongst the Aussenkehr grape farms is the 360 hectare Government-owned Namibia Grape Company (NGC) which employs about 260 permanent workers and close to 700 seasonal workers during harvest time.

Grapes from the farm are exported mainly to Europe, the United Kingdom, the Middle East, the Far East and other smaller markets. Aussenkehr lies 50 km west of Noordoewer along the Orange River, which forms the border between Namibia and South Africa.

click to enlarge INADEQUATE ABODES: Huts made of reeds from the banks of the Orange River are home to some of the Aussenkehr workers © Photo: CONTRIBUTED