Crops washed away, and children kept out of school for months
Staff Reporter
A National Council Standing Committee on Agriculture, Environment and Natural Resources report on the flood-prone regions of northern Namibia has revealed that a total of N$17.5 million has been allocated to the Agriculture Ministry to harvest and restore rainwater for the excavation of earth dams in the Ohangwena and Oshana regions. However, due to delays in the procurement process, it is anticipated that these planned earth dams will only be completed during the next financial year 2024/2025.
The National Council committee visited the Oshana, Omusati, Ohangwena, and Oshikoto regions, which are annually affected by flooding, and has subsequently advised the Agriculture Ministry to construct sufficient earth dams. The floodwaters in these regions keep children out of school for up to four months and destroy crops, exacerbating food insecurity. It was reported that a total of 166,000 people in the Omusati region had been affected by floods at one time.
During a courtesy call on the Governor of the Oshikoto Region, Penda Ya Ndakolo, the Committee was informed that the region received minimal flooding the past year, with constituencies such as Omuntele receiving a sizeable volume of water from the Ohangwena and Oshana regions, albeit not concerning. However, the Oshikoto Governor indicated that the water flow from the two regions remains stationary for some time, causing some establishments to close down until it subsides. This impacts service delivery and thus underscores the need for proper drainage systems across the floodplains, but due to a lack of funds, this is yet to be realised.
Heavy rains received in the south-eastern parts of Angola and north-eastern parts of Namibia in the Cuvelai catchment area during the second week of January 2023 resulted in floods in the Oshana Region. The community members also informed the Committee that floodwater destroys their fields, and as a result, they do not yield sufficient harvest to feed their families. According to them, the drought relief food they get from the Regional Council is not sufficient. Another challenge brought about by the floodwater is that their children do not go to school for up to four months, resulting in them losing out on schoolwork. Communities are sharing water with wild animals from the Etosha National Park as a result of the damaged fence. Consequently, wild animals prey on their livestock, and the lives of the herders and shepherds charged with looking after the animals are also at risk from these marauding wild animals such as lions.
In the Omusati region, the National Council committee was informed that in recent years, the region has been prone to recurrent droughts, floods, veld fires, as well as the outbreak of human and animal diseases. The report detailed that the region faces small-scale floods yearly, which sometimes result in damage of varying magnitudes. However, during 2008 and 2009, unprecedented floods were experienced, affecting over 166,000 people across the region and causing extensive damage to socio-economic infrastructure. According to recent experiences, the highest flood risk areas are Outapi, Anamulenge, Okalongo, Etayi, Ogongo, Oshikuku, Elim, and Otamanzi.
The Regional Council in the Omusati further informed the Committee that they received N$100,000 to build an earth dam, but all funds were redirected to the pandemic, and the project has since stalled.
In the Ohangwena Region, the effect of the floods lasts for several months. According to statistics from the Ohangwena Regional Council, over 1,300 families are affected by the floods, of which 14 households and 116 people were relocated to higher grounds.
Community members the Committee met indicated that as early as January of 2023, the western part of the Ohangwena Region was hard hit by floods. About 2,529 households comprising 18,000 people were severely affected as they could not get any harvest and are in dire need of food and animal grazing. The community members also added that despite identifying a water aquifer, financial constraints did not allow for the drilling of boreholes to a depth of up to 300 metres. Current boreholes are not sustainable in the long run as they are not deep enough.