/ 22 June 2004

Namibia’s white farmers face uncertain future

Namibia's white farmers are increasingly concerned about their future after President Sam Nujoma's government began targeting a second group of farms for expropriation under its land reform programme. A second batch of letters was sent to white farmers last week, on the heels of a first bunch in early May, notifying farm owners to set a price for the sale of their land to the State.

Namibia’s white farmers are increasingly concerned about their future after President Sam Nujoma’s government began targeting a second group of farms for expropriation under its land reform programme.

A second batch of letters was sent to white farmers last week, on the heels of a first bunch in early May, notifying farm owners to set a price for the sale of their land to the State.

”My neighbour received a notice three days ago,” said a farmer who asked not to be named.

”Four more farmers in my area have also received a letter signed by Lands Minister

Pohamba.”

”We don’t know what to do if we also receive such a notice. Our children are teenagers, maybe we should emigrate to Australia,” said the farmer, who inherited his farm from his grandfather.

Fearing the worst, the farmer said he was cutting back on expenses and only purchasing goods that are essential to run his farm.

A lands ministry official declined to comment on the new notices.

”I cannot comment on that and I cannot disclose any figures at this stage”, the official said.

Land is a sensitive issue in southern Africa, where,as in other part of Africa, most of the arable land is in the hands of a small group of white farmers. In Namibia, they number around 3 800.

The example of Zimbabwe, where thousands of white-owned farms were seized and handed over to new black farmers, was hailed in some quarters as a justified solution to the decades-old conundrum.

Since 1996, the Namibian government has bought 130 farms under its ”willing seller, willing buyer” principle and resettled about 40 000 people on them.

In addition, 700 white-owned commercial farms were bought on the open market by black Namibians since independence through affirmative action loans from the agricultural bank.

The government in the former German colony, which came under South African rule until independence in 1990, maintains that the expropriations will be carried out in strict accordance with its laws.

But the assurances appear to have fallen on deaf ears.

”I am aware of the uncertainty prevailing among the farmers.

Already companies selling agricultural equipment are feeling the pinch, because farmers hold back with investments to improve their infrastructure,” Jan de Wet, outgoing president of the largest commercial farmers’ organisation told about 60 white farmers last week.

De Wet’s organisation, the Namibia Agricultural Union (NAU), has won an extension of the deadline given to the first group of farmers to respond to the notices, to June 30.

”We are for a fair expropriation process, but the government has not even made known the criteria to expropriate in the public interest,” says Sigi Eimbeck, co-founder of a new group called the Namibia Farmers’ Support Initiative created earlier this year.

The planned farm expropriations are thought to be having a ripple effect on foreign investment.

German businessman Wilfried Pabst said that he had frozen investment in Namibia after running into problems in Zimbabwe.

Pabst complained of being harrassed by Zimbabwean local officials who called him and his staff ”white pigs”.

”Now President Sam Nujoma is using similar socialist vocabulary like Robert Mugabe and farm expropriations are to happen in Namibia.

”I don’t need another Zimbabwe in my life,” said Pabst. – Sapa-AFP