The Ministry of Agriculture, Water and Land Reform is planning to build a N$35million meat-processing facility at Katima Mulilo. This would help boost cattle farmers in northern communal areas (NCAs).
Ndiyakupi Nghituwamata was the executive director for agriculture, water, and land reform when she visited the proposed facility near the Katima Mulilo Abattoir.
Jona Musheko (ministry spokesperson) stated that the plant is one the major activities that are funded by the European Union (EU), through the 11th European Development Fund 11 (EDF 11).
This development follows shortly after beef from Namibia’s NCAs was processed at Katima Mulilo Abattoir and entered the Ghanaian Market.
Farmers in the NCAs complain about a lackluster market for their livestock over the years, while farmers south-of the redline had access lucrative export markets in the EU, Norway, and now the United States (US).
Michael Humavindu (deputy executive director of industrialisation & trade) commented recently on the beef situation. He stated that there is huge potential for 1,2million African cattle to be used for NCA beef.
“Meat comes to Africa on planes with the Congo buying its beef from France, and Angola buying from Brazil. This presents a huge potential market for farmers north of the redline,” he says.
“Apart from the construction of the processing plant, the funding also includes the construction of the Katima Mulilo quarantine facility and the upgrading of the Sachinga livestock development centre in the region, which would be equipped with a satellite artificial insemination facility,” Humavindu says.
Nghituwamata says: “The Katima Mulilo abattoir is an export abattoir, which means we have been exporting raw beef to other countries with less to no value addition.
“With this new meat-processing plant we will be able to add value to the meat and simultaneously create jobs (during the construction period and operation of the plant).”
Eight NCAs in Oshana and Oshikoto, Ohangwena and Zambezi have the livestock support programme (LSP).
The programme’s overall goal is to encourage entrepreneurship and improve the livelihood of northern livestock farming communities in an economically sustainable manner. It also aims to improve the performance and efficiency of the livestock value chains in the NCAs.
The EU has estimated that the EDF11 programme will be funded at a total of N$284million.
The LSP funding agreement in the NCAs has been signed on 8 June 2017, while programme estimate agreements were signed on 15 August 2019, for the implementation of the programme which will run through 14 April 2025.
This estimate of the programme is in line with national plans for the development and maintenance of the beef value chain within the NCAs, as outlined by the Harambee Comprehensively Coordinated Integrated Agricultural Development Programme.
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Source: namibian
