THE German government is willing to assist the country with money to solve the thorny issue of land reform and resettlement on condition that the money is used to train and equip farmers. The Germans have ruled out the possibility of contributing money to a special land fund. Dr Helga Countess Strachwitz, the German Commissioner for African Affairs said this week that the willing-buyer, willing-seller approach should be addressed as soon as possible. She added that Germany was willing to provide DM5-million to assist in the country’s land resettlement programmes as long as it is done within the perimeters of the constitution. In her discussions with government officials, she was informed that the government was debating the idea of introducing land tax as one of the ways of addressing the imbalance in land distribution. The German government has offered to provide technical experts to help in the land reform process. – Namibian Economist