Food security 'hangs in the balance'

While expectations for an above-normal rainy season indicated that food security will improve, this may hang in the balance as cumulative rains for the season currently indicate it is below normal.Food insecurity in Namibia has been predicted to improve between April to August this year, with about 239 000 people - or 9% of the population - experiencing high levels of acute food insecurity.However, these expectations were based on the fact that Namibia would receive normal to above-normal rainfall, which had been forecasted for the 2022/2023 rainfall season, and that households would be able to consume food from their production, signifying the start of the 2023-2024 consumption period.“This is the post-harvest period in Namibia, and prices are expected to decline considerably as the impacts of the conflict in Ukraine ease and above-normal crop production in South Africa is also expected.”This according to the Namibia Integrated Food Security Phase Classification Acute Food Insecurity Analysis report for September 2022 to August 2023.However, Agribank has said poor rainfall performance and food prices threaten food security, particularly in the most vulnerable households.Prices remain elevated one year after Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. This has affected agricultural commodity markets which reached peak levels at the end of 2022, it said.ImpactContrary to outlooks, cumulative rains between October 2022 and February 2023 indicate below-normal rainfall across most parts of the country.According to the report, between January and March, an estimated 390 000 - or 15% of the population - were facing high acute food insecurity.Between September and December last year, an estimated 376 000 people (14% of the population) were facing acute food insecurity, with about 6 000 people in humanitarian crisis, it said.It added that the impact of three successive seasons of inadequate rainfall, prolonged dry spells in several places, the early end of the rainy season and high food prices, which have been made worse by the conflict between Ukraine and Russia, are the leading causes of the current food-security situation.“Because households are increasingly dependent on purchases and have less purchasing power due to rising prices, the lean season has started earlier than usual."According to crop-production estimates for the 2021/2022 cropping season, Namibia harvested 151 723 tonnes, which was slightly below the previous season’s harvest of 153 028 tonnes and above the average annual production of 123 710 tonnes.It further said the food-security situation for the period between January and March was projected to deteriorate, with about 390 000 people in Namibia estimated to face high levels of acute food insecurity.

Food security 'hangs in the balance'

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Namibian Sun 2026-05-21

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Food security 'hangs in the balance'

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Namibian Sun 2026-05-21

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