Despite some parts of the country receiving good rains, farmers in the north continue to fear a recurrence of drought.
Many livestock farmers, especially in the Oshana Region, have already lost hope of receiving rainfall this season.
Some of the farmers at Otuwala village, a few kilometres from Oshakati, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said their livestock continue to die because of the shortage of water.
“We have lost hope this season. We only received little rain last year and there is no grazing left. It’s dry in this area,” said one of the farmers.
The mahangu farmers also expressed similar sentiments, saying they are worried because their crop is wilting and the army worm has invaded their fields, destroying the crops.
“I am worried about what is happening to my mahangu crop. It is dying because this year’s rain is so disappointing and the armyworm has invaded my field,” said Christina Medusalem.
According to the Cuvelai-Etosha Basin Senior Hydrologist, Ronny Hango, many parts of the country have received showers, with places like Outapi, Eastern Omaheke and Aranos said to have received heavier than normal rainfall.
Other parts like Kunene, Oshikoto and Oshana regions have only received little rainfall.
“We anticipated good rain this year and we are still hoping to get it,” said Hango.
When asked about the dry spell being experienced in some parts of the country, Hango said, “For the Cuvelai-Etosha Basin, it is normal to experience a dry spell in January, however it is not yet too late for good rain. Anxiety will begin to mount when we find ourselves with nothing in mid- February,” he said.
He further explained that both the Southern Africa Regional Climate Outlook Forum (SARCOF) and the Sea Surface Forum for the National Oceanic Atmospheric Administration have predicted normal to above normal rainfall for this year.
SARCOF is a regional climate outlook prediction and application process adopted by the 14 Sadc states.
“The only worrisome situation is that the clouds are building up daily but in most cases do not result in good down pours. This requires some scientific explanation,” concluded Hango.
Source - http://www.namibian.com.na/
