Farmers’ associations there to protect farmers, Ngaruka says

Organised agriculture can address farmers’ challenges by lessening the burden on individuals in accessing agricultural services, and it can ensure inclusivity in development and decision-making in the sector.

This according to Agribank’s technical advisor for livestock and rangeland management Erastus Ngaruka, who said the general role of a farmers’ association is to protect the rights and interests of farmers and to act as a link between them and other stakeholders or service providers in the sector.

He said the agriculture sector faces endless challenges associated with climate change, markets, technologies, inputs and conflicts, among others. These are hindering sustainable crop and livestock production in the country at all scales in communal and commercial production environments, he noted.

According to him, communal farming areas comprise mostly of farmers producing at a smaller scale and their production is oriented to subsistence. “They participate mostly in informal trade or marketing segments; however, a significant number does participate in the formal markets.”

On the other hand, farmers in the commercial farming environment produce at a larger scale for formal markets, including export markets.

The sector’s challenges require that all relevant stakeholders coordinate their strategies and efforts to overcome these challenges, he said. “The Namibian agriculture sector is organised and institutionalised through various role players participating in different value chains.”

Ngaruka said these institutions include farmers’ associations that directly represent farmers in their respective geographical areas and interests.

He explained that the associations are recognised (gazetted) non-profit institutions and are also affiliated to national unions. “These associations subsist on affiliation fees and commissions received for facilitating services such as farm product sales.”

Critical task

Ngaruka pointed out that the agriculture sector is regarded as the largest employer in the country; however, in relation to the output or productivity, there seems to be a gap in that the workforce is higher and productivity is relatively low.

“This gap can be attributed to the low skills and knowledge levels of the agricultural workforce, besides other challenges.”

Therefore, Ngaruka said capacity building or skills development in the sector should be a priority, and a critical task in the mandate of farmers' associations.

These associations need to develop and organise needs-based training and information-dissemination programmes to keep farmers abreast and simultaneously improving their productivity, he noted. “The associations need to be at the forefront of sourcing and promoting improved and appropriate technologies and sustainable farming practices to ensure sustainable productivity and livelihoods of their farming communities."

One of the common challenges for many communal farmers is poor access to production inputs supplies such as seeds, medicines, implements and feeds, he said. “This can be attributed to distance or remoteness, affordability and lack of information, among others.”

To close this gap, farmers’ associations can coordinate the acquisition of such inputs and ensure that their farmers are equipped and able to sustain their production.

Linking farmers to markets

Ngaruka said marketing is another aspect of critical importance to farmers. “The availability and accessibility of markets are a challenge to many farmers, especially in communal areas.”

He said this is where a farmers’ associations can play the role of exploring and securing markets, thus linking the farmers to the markets. This process includes the harmonisation of market requirements with the farmers' needs, or harmonising the production and marketing of farm products.

“Furthermore, a farmers’ association is the mouthpiece of the farmers at platforms of policy formulations and decisions where it must share the views and protect the interest of the farmers.”

Ngaruka added that the performance and sustainability of a farmers’ association depends on the commitment of the farmers, the management capacity of its leadership, and the necessary facilities such as the office and equipment to manage the institution.

“Therefore, while investing efforts to capacitate farmers, the association should also capacitate itself.”