The government plans to establish agro-processing centres in rural areas to boost local production, stimulate economic growth, and add value to agricultural produce.
President Nangolo Mbumba said this initiative will require affordable small-scale technologies, equipment, and tools to enhance agro-processing in the country.
“Our country, Namibia, is arriving at ensuring food self-sufficiency for its people in the crops subsector. To support and encourage local production, the Namibian Government plans to establish agro-processing centres all over Namibia, particularly in the rural areas, for youth, cooperatives and farmers in general,” he said at the occasion of the high-level meeting on industrialisation and agricultural modernisation of the 9th FOCAC summit in China.
He noted that this needs to be done to add value to Namibia’s agricultural produce, develop new products, contribute to economic activities in remote areas, and stimulate economic growth.
“For these centres to be a success, we need to acquire affordable small-scale technologies, equipment and tools,” Mbumba noted.
The Prescient said agriculture is the biggest employer in many African countries and therefore, investments in modern equipment, tools and technology are essential to boost productivity and secure livelihoods.
“This sector remains a top priority in Africa and is necessary for food security and nutrition, for the wellbeing and development of our people. We therefore welcome cooperation with the Government of the People’s Republic of China in this regard,” he said.
In addition, technical assistance and capacity building for the agronomic industry, in terms of skills development would go a long way in enhancing food security and sustainability, he emphasised.
“Agriculture is also an important foreign currency earner. In the case of Namibia, we are currently exporting beef to the Chinese Market, as well as the EU and US markets, and we hope to strengthen cooperation in that sector, even as we aim to modernise our processes,” he noted.
The President noted that Africa’s modernisation would require harnessing all human development sectors.
“For accelerated industrialisation, we need enhanced agricultural production and value addition and efficient environmental responsiveness through green development. China’s industrialisation has been rapid and given our excellent relations with China, the African continent can draw valuable lessons from China’s development trajectory,” he said.
Mbumba also noted that green development is essential to modernisation as it takes into consideration the social and environmental impacts of development.
“As a pillar of the overall Namibian approach to sustainable industrialisation, green industrialisation will help ensure that our structural transformation process does not lead to stranded assets but will support beneficial urbanisation, and resource efficiency in both input and output production process, reduce carbon emissions and maintain our underlying natural capital,” he said.
