Land conference wheels finally in motion

JEMIMA BEUKES The lands ministry has finally confirmed the country’s much-anticipated second national land conference will take place from 1 to 5 October at the Safari Court Hotel in Windhoek.Ministry spokesperson Chrispin Matongela said preparations for conference were in full swing. “We have now secured the Safari Court Hotel and Conference Centre for the venue. We will be sending out additional information once Prime Minister Saara Kuugongelwa-Amadhila has sent out the official announcement. We will then give more information to the public,” he said. Uhuru Dempers, convener of the Civil Society Working Group on Land Reform, said they have been invited by the prime minister to serve on a high-level committee tasked with organising the land conference. “We have attended two meetings so far. The consultations are starting next week in the regions and the entire July will be dedicated to regional conferences and this is where stakeholders will be invited to present their position papers. And also at the national conference, we have been invited to present our position paper on the draft agenda,” said Dempers. Landless People’s Movement (LPM) deputy leader and chief strategist Henny Seibeb, however, said they have not been informed or invited to attend the land conference, but will be sharing their plans with the public during a press briefing later this week. “As far as LPM is concerned we have not been invited to the national land conference and we have not received any written or verbal communication from the preparatory committee. Not from the prime minister, minister of land reform or even from President Hage Geingob himself. As it stands, we are not invited. We are cut out from the land conference. What we shall do and what we plan to do will be revealed on Wednesday,” he said. Popular Democratic Movement (PDM) leader McHenry Venaani confirmed being invited to be part of the high-level committee. “The PDM will be having consultations in the regions and we will have our land conference in September this year,” said Venaani. Commenting on the LPM’s exclusion from the high-level committee, Matongela said it is unfair for all political parties and concerned groups to expect to be invited to be part of this committee. According to him they have invited key stakeholders that present a certain sector in the country.“Nangof (the Namibian Non-Governmental Organisations Forum) represents a lot of organisations; you can imagine if we invite everyone. You cannot expect the whole country to be on the high-level committee. The regional consultations are there and they can be part of those consultations,” he said. The leader of the country’s oldest political party, the South West Africa National Union (Swanu), Dr Tangeni Ijambo, said it is a pity they have not been invited to give input, as part of the organising committee.The party had also not been notified of the official dates for the land conference, he added. “Swanu is the one party that is consistent when it comes to the call for land for the people. One wonders if those that are invited are not are in cahoots with the government.”Direction Although it is unclear at this point what the exact agenda for the conference will be, it is certain that ancestral land and expropriation with or without compensation are going take centre stage.Ancestral land is a major sticking point, given that the first land conference in 1991 had left this issue to simmer, amid a fresh push by pressure groups.During his State of the Nation Address (SONA) earlier this year President Geingob said ancestral land restitution would be discussed at the upcoming conference.Also on the agenda would be the willing buyer, willing seller principle; expropriation in the public interest with just compensation, as provided for in the constitution; urban land reform and resettlement criteria and the veterinary cordon fence.

Land conference wheels finally in motion

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Namibian Sun 2025-07-07

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Land conference wheels finally in motion

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Namibian Sun 2025-07-07

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