Namibia Agricultural Policy 2015.

The Namibia Agricultural Policy 2015 is a national policy with an overall goal to create a conducive environment for increased and sustained agriculture production and productivity, to accelerate the agriculture sector contribution to National Growth Domestic Product, and to promote development of national agriculture sector across the value chain. The document is divided into two major parts: Part A articulates the policy and strategies for the agriculture sector, further subdivided into specific themes that cut across the agricultural value chain and its support systems; and Part B mainly outlines the role of stakeholders, policy implementation and revision as well as monitoring and evaluation mechanisms.
To make agricultural more productive and sustainable efforts will be focused on three main areas: 1) crop production, 2) livestock production, and 3) plant and animal health. To this end, the policy presents an exhaustive list of actions. Among other things, the government shall implement a conservation agriculture programme; implement the Dry Land Crop Production Programme and support farmers through the provision of subsidized fertilizer, improved seeds as well as weeding and ploughing services; expand extension services to bring services closer to crop farming communities; implement and support the Horticultural Development Programme; expand soil conservation efforts; implement National Rangeland Management Policy and Strategies; diversify breeding materials through the livestock research stations; increase the number of farmers that benefit from quality breeding materials; legislate the exportation and importation of breeding materials; prohibit the use of growth stimulants and growth hormones in livestock production; legislate the use of fodder and supplements containing GMOs and LMOs; and establish embryo and sperm banks in order to conserve and preserve our quality indigenous and exotic livestock breeding material.
These efforts will not only enable agriculture development but will also help reducing rural poverty through providing access by poor farmers to agricultural research and extension services and promoting equitable use and sustainable management of natural resources. They will also help the agriculture sector to gain the potential needed to create employment through increased investment in production infrastructure as well as processing and value addition to primary products.
To enable more inclusive and efficient agricultural and food systems efforts will be focused on the areas of research and development, food and product safety, plant and animal health, agro-industry development including agro-financing, agriculture marketing and trade, agriculture training and capacity building, provision of agriculture management information system, and establishment of international cooperation in agriculture.
The implementation of the strategies under this policy is expected to be a concerted effort by a host of role players within the Government, private sector and civil society as well as with the support of the international cooperating partners, all under the coordination and supervision of the Ministry of Agricultural, Water and Forestry. The stakeholders are expected to supplement Government/policy strategies with the aim to attain the objectives of this Policy. The Ministry is the main implementer of this Policy and will ensure that the strategies for implementation of the Policy are contained in documents such as Sectoral Execution Plans and Sector Strategic Plans among others. The execution plans will also be a comprehensive implementation tool of the strategies of the Namibia Agriculture Policy and shall be utilized in monitoring and evaluating the policy.