Africa-Press – Namibia. THE Ministry of Agriculture, Water and Land Reform has denied allegations that farm Gross-Osombahe has been vandalised and is in a dilapidated state.
THE Ministry of Agriculture, Water and Land Reform has denied allegations that farm Gross-Osombahe has been vandalised and is in a dilapidated state.
This comes after the headman of Schmallinger village at Gobabis, Wallace Finnies, has said the farm has been unoccupied for two to three years after the government bought it.
Farm Gross-Osombahe is situated at Omitara village in the Omaheke region, some 90km from Gobabis.
Finnies says the farm was vandalised by unknown criminals as the agriculture ministry has not bothered to appoint security guards to protect the property.
“Me and my business partner applied to be resettled on the farm to start a poultry factory and to train residents from the Omitara area on how to produce and farm, as well as to export chicken, but this has been to no avail,” Finnies says.
He says 25 residents of Omitara could have been employed by this project.
The headman, however, says regional governor Pio Nganate has allegedly refused to resettle him and his partner.
The ministry, however, says the farm was officially handed over to the Osombahe Farmers Co-operative on 27 June.
Ministry spokesperson Jona Musheko says Farm Gross-Osombahe was acquired by the government for N$23,8 million on 15 July 2019.
He says the farm has a total size of 8 857ha.
“The farm was acquired from Gross-Osombahe Nord CC, with two shareholders, Christoph Gustav Koehler, with a 50% share, and Eroka Waltraud Koehler, with a 50% share, for settlement purposes,” Musheko says.
He says the farm was advertised for resettlement between 13 August and 13 September 2021.
Musheko says the process starts with the acquisition of a farm, which is then divided into farming units, before the units are advertised in newspapers for all landless interested Namibians to apply.
“Regional resettlement committees then scrutinise all applications and make recommendations to the Land Reform Advisory Commission to advise the minister, who is mandated by the Agricultural (Commercial) Land Reform Act to allocate,” he says.
Musheko says the Osombahe Farmers Co-operative has about 145 community members from Omitara village in the Omaheke region, who applied for all three farming units of the farm on 9 September 2021.
The ministry has allocated the three farming units to the Osombahe Farmers Co-operative on condition that the United Nations World Food Programme (UNWFP) project plan be adopted for implementation on the farm, he says.
“The co-operative, the Omaheke Regional Council, and the UNWFP have already started discussions to produce a tripartite agreement on how the farm would be managed,” Musheko says.
He says in the interim, the co-operative’s two security guards are on the farm to guard the property.
Musheko says before the farm was allocated, security guards from the National Youth Service were guarding the farm.
Nganate this week said any Namibian can apply for the farm, and individuals should not approach him.
He said Finnies applied like anyone else, and the resettlement committee recommended the Osombahe Farmers Co-operative.
“It is a decision that is taken collectively. For him to say I did not want to settle him is nonsense,” Nganate says.
“Mr Finnies and his business partner were in my office, and I encouraged them to apply,” he said.
Nganate said he is not aware of the farm being vandalised.
“I have been at that farm last year, but I don’t know what condition it is in now . . . There are guards there,” he said.
This comes after the headman of Schmallinger village at Gobabis, Wallace Finnies, has said the farm has been unoccupied for two to three years after the government bought it.
Farm Gross-Osombahe is situated at Omitara village in the Omaheke region, some 90km from Gobabis.
Finnies says the farm was vandalised by unknown criminals as the agriculture ministry has not bothered to appoint security guards to protect the property.
“Me and my business partner applied to be resettled on the farm to start a poultry factory and to train residents from the Omitara area on how to produce and farm, as well as to export chicken, but this has been to no avail,” Finnies says.
He says 25 residents of Omitara could have been employed by this project.
The headman, however, says regional governor Pio Nganate has allegedly refused to resettle him and his partner.
The ministry, however, says the farm was officially handed over to the Osombahe Farmers Co-operative on 27 June.
Ministry spokesperson Jona Musheko says Farm Gross-Osombahe was acquired by the government for N$23,8 million on 15 July 2019.
He says the farm has a total size of 8 857ha.
“The farm was acquired from Gross-Osombahe Nord CC, with two shareholders, Christoph Gustav Koehler, with a 50% share, and Eroka Waltraud Koehler, with a 50% share, for settlement purposes,” Musheko says.
He says the farm was advertised for resettlement between 13 August and 13 September 2021.
Musheko says the process starts with the acquisition of a farm, which is then divided into farming units, before the units are advertised in newspapers for all landless interested Namibians to apply.
“Regional resettlement committees then scrutinise all applications and make recommendations to the Land Reform Advisory Commission to advise the minister, who is mandated by the Agricultural (Commercial) Land Reform Act to allocate,” he says.
Musheko says the Osombahe Farmers Co-operative has about 145 community members from Omitara village in the Omaheke region, who applied for all three farming units of the farm on 9 September 2021.
The ministry has allocated the three farming units to the Osombahe Farmers Co-operative on condition that the United Nations World Food Programme (UNWFP) project plan be adopted for implementation on the farm, he says.
“The co-operative, the Omaheke Regional Council, and the UNWFP have already started discussions to produce a tripartite agreement on how the farm would be managed,” Musheko says.
He says in the interim, the co-operative’s two security guards are on the farm to guard the property.
Musheko says before the farm was allocated, security guards from the National Youth Service were guarding the farm.
Nganate this week said any Namibian can apply for the farm, and individuals should not approach him.
He said Finnies applied like anyone else, and the resettlement committee recommended the Osombahe Farmers Co-operative.
“It is a decision that is taken collectively. For him to say I did not want to settle him is nonsense,” Nganate says.
“Mr Finnies and his business partner were in my office, and I encouraged them to apply,” he said.
Nganate said he is not aware of the farm being vandalised.
“I have been at that farm last year, but I don’t know what condition it is in now . . . There are guards there,” he said.
For More News And Analysis About Namibia Follow Africa-Press
