The Southern African Science Service Centre for Climate Change and Adaptive Land Management (SASSCAL) is currently implementing nine projects in Namibia, valued at nearly N$60 million in a bid to address climate change.
According to the SASSCAL Programme Coordinator in Namibia, Panduleni Hamukwaya, the projects are specifically designed to empower communities, enhance food security, and address water challenges.
“We have about nine (projects), at the tune of almost N$60 million that are being implemented here in Namibia. To us, that is very significant, and they are looking at different areas,” Hamukwaya said.
Emphasising the projects’ community-focused approach, he added “these are specific projects that aim to allow our communities to adapt to the issue of climate change”.
Among the highlighted projects is Enhanced Livelihoods and Natural Resource Management under Accelerated Climate Change (ELNAC), which aims to address human-wildlife conflict in the Zambezi region.
“When you’re looking at those regions, that’s where the challenges of human-wildlife conflicts are happening, impacting not only the crop production on those people but also mechanisms that are required to address that is being addressed by this project,” Hamukwaya explained.
The FoSRecS project, according to Hamukwaya, is aimed at enhancing food security through the integration of climate-resilient crops in maize-based farming systems among small-scale farmers in Zambia and Namibia.
He underlined the project’s significance by noting its engagement with small-scale farmers, stating: “It’s focused and engaged with small-scale farmers on the ground as we speak.”
Another noteworthy project, Sustain, is focused on food security and sustainable woodland use in drought-prone communal areas.
Hamukwaya specified the project’s focus areas, stating “this one is looking at the food security but also looking at how we utilise the woodland for drought-prone communal areas, like in the Kunene areas and other areas that are prone to drought.”
Addressing the impact of bush encroachment on livestock and crop production, the RIBS project is set to improve land utilisation through bush thinning.
Hamukwaya detailed the project’s objectives, stating “we are trying to assess the impact of bush thinning. Bush encroachment is some areas of a very serious nature when it comes not only to livestock but also to crop production.”
SASSCAL is also actively involved in water-related projects, with the WIRE project focusing on water storage in the Angola-Namibia Cuvelai system.
“This one is really looking at how best we can capitalise on the floods that are happening in the northern region and how we can install those water storages for not only addressing the challenges of water but also for crop production or horticulture,” Hamukwaya explained.
