NCCI counts impact of drought

Last year’s debilitating drought may have left scars on the Namibian agriculture landscape, but cereal producers and millers bounced back strongly to post impressive production results in 2013, the Namibian Chamber of Commerce and Industry (NCCI) said. NCCI President Sven Thieme said this during the chamber’s year-end gala dinner held for stakeholders and members here on Monday. He noted that the same could, however, not be said for livestock farmers who suffered losses due to the closure of on-the-hoof export of cattle, sheep and goats to South Africa for a three-month period last year. “That near catastrophe was arrested due to successful bilateral discussions between Namibia and South Africa. The talks resulted in both countries agreeing on less draconian veterinary requirements for the export of live animals from Namibia to South Africa,” he said. Thieme said Namibia’s horticulture retail space (production and marketing of fruits, vegetables, flowers, and ornamental plants) is now filled with local produce, which was not the case in the past. “Furthermore, new merchandising plans for retailers are underway to increase market penetration to 60%. This is an important development that we all should embrace especially because it supports rural households whose livelihood strategies encompass activities around agriculture,” he said. Thieme also noted that the primary industries (agriculture, fishing and mining) recorded a decline of 9.3% during 2013, compared to the strong growth in 2012. This poor performance was due to contractions in all three sectors, he said. The agriculture sector contracted the most at almost 27% due to drought, followed by the fishing sector which declined at a rate of 2.6%. The mining sector recorded a decline of 1.2%. The NCCI president said notwithstanding one of the most severe droughts in recent memory, the Namibian economy still managed to register a respectable growth of 4.4% in 2013. WINDHOEK NAMPA