Agribusdev another step closer to the grave

MATHIAS HAUFIKU



WINDHOEK

Agribusdev employees fear the decision to move the company from its rented premises in one of Windhoek’s biggest industrial areas to the headquarters of the agriculture ministry could signal the end of the entity.

Last week, workers were given a week to clear their desks and move across town to the ministerial headquarters at the government office park, where they now occupy the fourth floor.

Agribusdev, which has been operating without a substantive managing director for over a year now, paid monthly rent in the region of N$115 000 to house its 18 employees based in Windhoek.

Many see this move as a tactic to dismantle the company mandated to operate the country’s green scheme projects, which are central to government’s food security drive.

Agriculture ministry executive director Percy Misika confirmed the move yesterday, which was announced by the company’s acting managing director Berfine Antindi on 17 August in a memo.

Explaining the move, Misika said: “They [Agribusdev] did not have money to pay rent and they were facing eviction. They asked us to accommodate them and since we still have space, we granted them temporary accommodation”.

Twiddling thumbs

Employees who spoke to Namibian Sun said they currently have no work to do and merely go to the office to avoid missing work.

“There is nothing to do, to be honest. We just go and sit at work. The board does not meet and the mandate to run projects was usurped by the ministry. It’s a sad situation considering the level of food insecurity in the country,” the worker who preferred anonymity said.

Another employee based at one of the Agribusdev-managed green schemes told this reporter: “We just come to work and hang around since there is nothing to do”.

“The farming equipment is broken and there is no money to repair them. As we speak, none of the projects planted any winter crops because there was no money to buy the inputs,” they said.

The employees also lamented the fact that they now have to share office space at the ministry.

Antindi said the sharing of office space is necessary because “the offices availed to Agribusdev are not enough and therefore colleagues will have to share until more space becomes available”.

Bad business model

The company’s management wrote to board chairperson Rose-Mary Shikangalah on 16 August enquiring about its strategic direction. They also requested a meeting with the board on 19 August, which never materialised.

Shikangalah responded via email telling the disgruntled workers that the board had engaged the relevant ministries without yielding any response.

In May, agriculture minister Calle Schlettwein made a 10-page submission to Cabinet pushing for the closure of Agribusdev, less than a decade after it was created.

He blamed the Agribusdev business model for the underperformance of the green scheme projects.

Heproposed that green schemes be outsourced to private operators and that they must operate as separate business entities, each with a dedicated steering committee to oversee the management of projects.

This plan was, however, shot down by Cabinet and referred to its treasury committee.

Asked whether there have been any new developments, Misika said “that matter is still under discussion”.

Meanwhile, public enterprises minister Leon Jooste said the matter is yet to be discussed at Cabinet’s treasury committee.