45 million hectares of bush encroached
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In Namibia today, about 45 million hectares of agricultural land is infested with encroached bushes, destroying the arable land and reducing its productivity.
Environment minister Pohamba Shifeta said bush encroachment leads to land degradation mostly in semi-arid to arid regions.
“This is a worrisome fact as nearly 70% of the Namibian population depends on agricultural activities and the livestock industry is the mainstay, with high contribution to the gross domestic product in the farming industry.”
He made these remarks at a handover of the Bush to Feed Plant in the Ozonahi Conservancy.
It is funded by the Environmental Investment Fund under the 'Empower to Adapt: Creating Climate Change Resilient Livelihoods Through Community-Based Natural Resource Management' project.
Bush harvesting equipment - four chainsaws, four brush cutters, four Kalahari chippers on trailers, one agri mixer machine, one pellet machine, a tractor with a trailer as well as a storage facility - was handed over.
The project has established four mobile units at selected villages within the conservancy area and recruited 20 community members to work as harvesters, while another five members are employed at the office to mix and package finished bush feed.
Environment minister Pohamba Shifeta said bush encroachment leads to land degradation mostly in semi-arid to arid regions.
“This is a worrisome fact as nearly 70% of the Namibian population depends on agricultural activities and the livestock industry is the mainstay, with high contribution to the gross domestic product in the farming industry.”
He made these remarks at a handover of the Bush to Feed Plant in the Ozonahi Conservancy.
It is funded by the Environmental Investment Fund under the 'Empower to Adapt: Creating Climate Change Resilient Livelihoods Through Community-Based Natural Resource Management' project.
Bush harvesting equipment - four chainsaws, four brush cutters, four Kalahari chippers on trailers, one agri mixer machine, one pellet machine, a tractor with a trailer as well as a storage facility - was handed over.
The project has established four mobile units at selected villages within the conservancy area and recruited 20 community members to work as harvesters, while another five members are employed at the office to mix and package finished bush feed.
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Namibian Sun
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