speech-hon alpheus naruseb

8/9/2019 Speech-Hon Alpheus Naruseb

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Honourable Chairperson of the Whole House Committee,Honourable Members ofthisAugust House,

1. I rise this afternoon with a deep sense of privilege to introduce Vote 25 for theMinistry of Lands and Resettlement for the 2010/2011 Financial Year to thisAugust House for support and approval.

2. I also reiterate my support for the Budget that was presented by the HonourableMinister of Finance earlier in the House. Iwould further like to extend my gratitudeto Honourable Saara Kuugongelwa-Amadhila, the Honourable Deputy Minister ofFinance, the Permanent Secretary and the entire team of dedicated staff for a jobwell executed under very challenging circumstances given the global economicenvironment.Honourable ChairpersonHonourable Members,

3. At the onset, I thought it imperative to give a brief outline on the mandate of theMinistry of Lands and Resettlement before I present the Budget for Vote 25. TheMinistry of Lands and Resettlement as the custodian of all State land in Namibia,was set up to prudently administer and manage this much sought after resource ina sustainable manner and to facilitate equitable and affordable access to land byall Namibians in orderto address disparities in income that are currently prevalentin our society.

4. The Land Reform programme is one of the strategies adopted by the Governmentsoon after independence as a vehicle to empower the people through access to,use and secure land tenure systems. The Government has thus investedresources in redressing the skewed land ownership patterns. The process ofLand Reform, to some, may seen too slow and ineffective but the programme iswell defined and the Ministry understands the responsibility and is on course todeliver.

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5. It is needless to over emphasize the fact that the predominant economic activityfor the majority of our people [ 7 0%] is agriculture and since land is a primarymeans of both subsistence and income generation in rural economics, access toland and security of tenure is of primary concern to economic empowerment andthe eradication of poverty in this country especially amongst the previouslydisadvantaged Namibians.

6. In cognizance of the main economic activity of our people the Government hassince independence taken steps to purchase farms to facilitate the accessibility toavailable agricultural land by the majority of the Namibian people in theframework of social justice and economic empowerment. The Ministry willcontinue to facilitate the equitable and affordable access to land through theResettlement Programme and the Affirmative Action Loan Scheme. Inundertaking the Land Reform programme, the Ministry is aware that the land to bedistributed is limited and the existence of the ever present multitude of competinginterests and claims for land. In recognition of this, the Ministry in close liaisonwith public and private stakeholders is working towards the development ofintegrated land use plans earmarked to guide land usage and allocation.Honourable Chairperson of the Whole House Committee,Honourable Members,

7. Having said the above, I now have the pleasure to present the 2010/2011 budgetfor the Ministry of Lands and Resettlement, together with the highlights ofachievements through expenditure in 2009/2010 and priorities for the financialyear 2010/2011.

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8. The Ministry of Lands and Resettlement has been allocated a total of OneHundred and Ninety Million, One Hundred and Ninety Six ThousandNamibia Dollars (N$190, 196,000) for the 2010/2011 Financial Year. Thisamount represents Eighty Four million, eight hundred and ninety sixthousand Namibian Dollars N$84, 896,000 for the operational budget andNinety Nine million, nine hundred and forty thousand Namibian DollarsN$99, 940,000 forthe DevelopmentBudget.

9. The 2010/2011 Budget of the Ministry of Lands and Resettlement as expressed inits Medium Term Plan will focus on four key programmes namely:-

LandAcquisition, Distribution andResettlement. Security of TenureandRealProperty. LandUsageand NationalSpatial Datainfrastructure.Programme1:LandAcquisition, Distribution andResettlement

10. The redistribution of land through the National Resettlement Programme and theAffirmative Action Loan Scheme is at the centre of the current Land Reformprocess. Namibia has approximately 69.6 million hectares of agricultural land ofwhich 36. 2 million hectares is freehold and 33. 4 million hectares is communal or"non-freehold". The Ministry has earmarked under the National ResettlementProgramme and the Affirmative Action Loan Scheme to redistribute 15 millionhectares offreehold land by the year 2020.

11. Currently the Ministry has so far distributed 1.4million hectaresof land under theNational Resettlement Programme and over 3 million hectares under theAffirmative Action Loan Scheme.

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In the 2009/10 Financial Year, the Ministry acquired 8 farms with a total area of26,000 hectares at a cost of N$21.2 million. This figure falls short of the setannual target of 534,000 hectares. The slow pace at which land is being acquiredhas negatively impacted the rate atwhich Government can resettle people.

12. Whilst it is appreciated that the programme is laden with continual challenges thatimpact negatively on the ability to acquire land the Ministry is perpetually indialogue with respective Stakeholders in an effort to remain relevant and achievethe set targets.

13. I would like to reassure this House that the Ministry is ever exploring alternativeways and methods targeted to expedite the pace at which land is acquired. In2009, in an effort to enhance the participation of various stakeholders in the LandReform process and to find a common understanding to the challenges withregards the pace at which land is being offered and acquired, I held severalconsultative meetings with various Stakeholders that comprise the Civil Society,the Church and the Namibia Agricultural Union [NAU], its Affiliates andMembership invarious Regions.

These consultations appear to bear fruit as the Ministry has recently seen anincrease in the number of farms that are being offered. I continue to exploreadministrative ways that would ensure speedy land delivery.

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14. Over the last few months the Ministry has also been involved in consultations withstakeholders regarding possible amendments to the Land Bill with a view toensuring that the preferent right of Government is not bypassed in the landmarket. I am happy to inform the House that the Ministry is in the final stages of theprocess of consulting Stakeholders on the various proposed amendments toharness loopholes inherent in the current legislation and the consolidation of theAgricultural [Commercial] Land ReformAct,Act No.6 of 1995 and the CommunalLand Reform Act, Act No.5 of 2002 into one Land Act. Several such consultativeworkshops were held in the Regions late last year and the comments wereincorporated for further discussion at the National Consultative Workshop to beheld in Windhoek at a date still to be decided. It is anticipated that once passed inParliament the Land Act will enhance efficiencies in land administration andaddress the current associated challenges.

15. The Ministry is also working towards the establishment of a Land Forum that willserve as a platform on which various key stakeholders come to discuss anddeliberate on issues concerning the Land Reform Programme. This platform isaimed at soliciting ideas and recommendations on how best the Government canimplement and achieve the set targets in land acquisition and resettlement. Theestablishment of a Land Forum is to ensure a fair, just and transparent land reformdelivery process.

16. In conjunction with the land acquisition drive, the Land Reform Programme hasin-built initiatives targeted at improving the economic productive levels of the landthat is acquired and distributed. The issue of post settlement support tobeneficiaries remains a major challenge within the implementation of theprogramme. It is a significant effort for most beneficiaries to bring their allotmentsinto full production without support from the Government.

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17. In an effort to address some of the challenges faced by resettled farmers, theMinistry embarked on a massive nation-wide infrastructural improvementprogramme in collaboration with the Experts from the Ministry of Agriculture,Water and Forestry. In the last Financial Year the project covered the farmers inHardap, Karasand parts of the Omaheke Region. The project is on-going and willbeextended toOtjozondjupa, Khomas, Erongoand Oshikoto Regions during thisFinancialYear.

18. In addition to the Infrastructural Improvement Programme, the Ministry inclose liaison with the Agricultural Bank of Namibia has introduced a financialpackage to be accessed by resettled farmers the procurement of productiveinputs. The Ministry of Lands and Resettlement and the Agricultural Bank ofNamibia have jointly contributed a total of N$20 million in the last Financial Yearand this loan scheme shall continue to be availed in this Financial Year. Anadditional N$5 million is also set aside for the training of resettled farmers inagriculturalandfarm management skills through a mentorship scheme.

19. An amount of N$98,875,OOONinety Eight Million Eight Hundred and SeventyFive Thousand Namibian Dollars) is required to carry forward the aboveprogrammeinthe2010/11FinancialYear.Programme 2: Security of Tenure and Real Property Programme.

20. This programme contributes to the maintenance of the Registry of land thataffords security of tenure and property rights. In addition to the maintenance andimprovement of the main Deeds Registry, the funds requested will build up theRegistryof land incommunal areas.

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21. The Communal Land Reform Act, [Act 5 of 2002] requires the registration of landholdings in communal areas. The registration of such rights has gatheredmomentum in the communal areas. The Ministry is close to completing theregistration of existing customary land rights in the Erongo, Hardap and KarasRegions. During this Financial Year the Ministry will work towards addressing thechallenging aspects of the communal land registration programme by focusing onlarge unregistered holdings. Through this programme, the Ministry will ensuresecurity of tenure to real property by improving the digital database that facilitatesregistration of immovable properties.

22. A total of N$ 20,861,000 (Twenty Million Eight Hundred and Sixty OneThousandNamibianDollars) is required to implement the above programme.Programme3LandUsage

23. As indicated earlier, the Ministry of Lands and Resettlement is also tasked toensure that Namibia's land resources are equitably allocated, efficientlymanaged and responsibly used for the benefit of all Namibians. Land relatedinterventions require careful internal and intra-institutional coordination and lackof coordination in this aspect will result in contradictory and competing demandsfor land uses.

24. The Ministry has so far developed a systematic and participatory approach in thedevelopment of Regional Land Use Plans. It is envisaged that the Hardap andKaras Land Use Plans will be finalised during this Financial Year and this willassist various Stakeholders with information for long term socio-economicdevelopment and will generally minimize land use conflicts.

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25. One of the objectives of this programme is to promote sustainable use of land as aresource to secure economic growth. During the last Financial Year the Ministrycarried out a demographic and socio-economic survey in areas earmarked forsmall scale farms in communal areas. The study aimed at minimizing potentialland use conflicts and at guiding a systematic development of the farming areas.The recommendations from the study will be used in the planning of the farmingunits and the development of essential farming infrastructure.An amount of N$30, 106,000 (Thirty Million One Hundred and Six Thousand) isrequired to implement the above programme.

PROGRAMME 4: National Spatial Data Infrastructure (NSDI): FundamentalDatasets

Honourable Chairperson of the Whole House Committee,Honourable Members,

26. The optimal utilisation of natural resources and efficient land management areessential in the management of our fragile environment. Recent flooding andother natural disasters in Namibia continue to challenge and tax our collectiveresolve to respond timely and effectively. The challenges we face today includesamong others planning and mitigation, readiness, response and recovery. Tomeet these challenges we need to locate values at-risk, areas forprevention/mitigation, identify natural and technological hazards and understandthe geographic distribution of incidents. This is where spatial data becomesessential.

27. Spatial data in the form of maps, aerial images and cadastral information providethe backbone for efficient and effective management of the challenges mentionedabove. The Ministry of Lands and Resettlement is determined to provide thespatial tools to help Namibia manage its environment optimally.

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28. During the 2009/1 0 fiscal year, the programme carried out the following activities: Submitted Namibia's Claim for Extended Continental Shelf to the United Nation's

Commission on the Limits of the Continental Shelf inApril this year. Continued with the revision of topographic maps of the Caprivi region, which is

now 60% complete. Captured digitally all the farm parcels in Namibia. Commenced the revision of the topographic maps of Oshana, Oshikoto, Omusati,

Ohangwena and parts of Kunene Regions.29. In this Financial Year on the 6th of April, Namibia made a presentation to the

Commission on the Limits of the Continental shelf. This presentation was the firststep towards convincing the United Nations that Namibia's Continental shelfextends beyond the conventional 200 nautical miles. The Ministry, under thisprogramme also plans to complete the revision of the 1:50000 topographic mapsof the Caprivi Region and continue with the revision of other Regions. Theintention ofthis exercise is to make the information accessible to the public via theinternet and authorized users in the nearfuture.

30. To enable the Ministry to execute these tasks and provide the geographicinformation appropriate for meeting Namibian's spatially related challenges, anamount of N$ 40,354,000 (Forty Million Three Hundred and Fifty Four Thousand)is required.

31. The Land Reform Programme is currently benefitting from the contributions of ourDevelopment partners from the European Union, the German Government andthe Spanish Cooperation. Their contributions continue to provide the muchneeded interventions towards the attainment of the Ministry set targets.

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32. The Land Reform process remains a priority of our Government and the Ministryof Land and Resettlement will strive to empower the people of Namibia throughthe eradication of poverty through access to land coupled with the prerequisitepost settlement support packages.

33. I therefore, at this juncture, wish to request the unwavering support of theHonorable Members of this August House, for approval of an amount of N$190,196,000 (OneHundredand NinetyMillion OneHundredand Ninety SixThousand Namibian Dollars) of which represents Eighty Four million, eighthundred and ninety six thousand Namibian Dollars N$ 84,896,000 is foroperational expenses and Ninety Nine million, nine hundred and fortythousand Namibian Dollars N$99,940,000 is for expenses that aredevelopmental in nature.

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32. The Land Reform process remains a priority of our Government and the Ministryof Land and Resettlement will strive to empower the people of Namibia throughthe eradication of poverty through access to land coupled with the prerequisitepost settlement support packages.

33. I therefore, at this juncture, wish to request the unwavering support of theHonorable Members of this August House, for approval of an amount of N$190,196,000 (One Hundred and Ninety Million One Hundred and Ninety SixThousand Namibian Dollars) of which represents Eighty Four million, eighthundred and ninety six thousand Namibian Dollars N$ 84,896,000 is foroperational expenses and Ninety Nine million, nine hundred and fortythousand Namibian Dollars N$99,940,000 is for expenses that aredevelopmental in nature.

I thank you.

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speech-hon alpheus naruseb

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