Justicia Shipena
President Netumbo Nandi-Ndaitwah has called on the agricultural sector to reimagine agriculture as a smart, sustainable and inclusive engine of development.
She said the industry must evolve to meet the country’s long-term food security and economic goals.
Nandi-Ndaitwah made the remarks on Wednesday at the 2025 Agricultural Outlook Conference held at the Windhoek Country Club.
The conference, themed “Harvesting the Future,” was organised by the Namibian Emerging Commercial Farmers Union (NECFU), the Namibian National Farmers Union (NNFU), the Previously Disadvantaged National Farmers Union (PDNFU), and the Namibian Agricultural Union (NAU).
The event brought together communal, emerging, and commercial farmers from across the country, along with supporting organisations and local and international agricultural experts.
Nandi-Ndaitwah said the sector must embrace climate-resilient practices, invest in innovation and agritech, support smallholder farmers, and build equitable and efficient value chains.
“To harvest the future, we must reimagine agriculture as a smart, sustainable, and inclusive engine of development. We need to embrace practices that make us resilient to climate change, invest in innovation, and ensure smallholder farmers are part of the transformation,” she said.
She stressed that agriculture is directly linked to development, noting that most countries have advanced through agricultural transformation.
“That is what we want to see in Namibia. We value agriculture not only because it feeds our nation but also because it builds our economy and makes us self-reliant,” Nandi-Ndaitwah said.
She added that agriculture serves as one of eight critical economic enablers for industrialisation, job creation, and food security.
Nandi-Ndaitwah acknowledged the challenges facing the sector, including climate change, soil degradation, and shifting consumer demands, but said they also present opportunities for transformation.
“Within these challenges lie the seeds to transform our agriculture sector,” she said.
She also expressed concern over the ageing farming population and the lack of youth participation in agriculture.
She called for stronger efforts to attract young people through connectivity, creativity, and access to finance.
The conference aimed to share knowledge and explore ways to improve farmers’ productivity and profitability, contributing to livelihoods, food security, and Namibia’s Gross Domestic Product. The agricultural sector supports over 70% of Namibians either directly or indirectly.
