Namibian farmers get debt relief from AgriBank after drought-emergency declared

Farmers in Namibia who are hard hit by the drought have been given a relief in settling their loans to the government owned AgriBank following declaration of the state of emergency by president Hage Geingob.

AgriBank's Chief Executive Officer Sakaria Nghikembua has made the announcement that Agribank will now offer relief to farmers as a national drought emergency. Part of the relief include giving clients up to two years to repay the remaining amount. AgriBank is a state-owned Namibian bank used to assist farmers with financing.

"We certainly wish we could do more but resources are limited. For the bank, our main source of funds is loan repayments by our clients."

"This means that total repayment relief is unfortunately not an option at this stage. But we believe we have done our best to assist our clients. We will maintain a flexible approach in our discussions with each client," he said, as reported by Xinhua.

Days after President of Namibia, Hage Geingob declared a state of emergency due to an on-going drought in the country, Prime Minister Saara Kuugongelwa Amadhila announced a drought intervention strategy.

Speaking on Tuesday in the National Assembly, Amadhila announced a package of about 573 million Namibian dollars (about USD 40 million) that will render food assistance, livestock marketing incentives as well as water tanks for families and farmers affected by the drought.

"Given the extent of the drought, these interventions will require the support of all Namibians, especially the business community and the international community." "We therefore call on all Namibians and development partners to assist in any way possible, so that we provide for our people who are affected as well as the livestock," said Amadhila, Xinhua noted.

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