EU Ambassador to Namibia H.E. Sinikka Antila, Dr. Andreas Goetze, Deputy Head of Mission - German Embassy and Ursula Hein-Rooinasie from KfW Development Bank officially handed over 10 vehicles valued at 6.5 million NAD to the Government of the Republic of Namibia, received by Hon. Calle Schlettwein, Minister of Agriculture, Water and Land Reform.

The vehicles are part of the Programme for Communal Land Development, supported jointly by KfW, the European Union and the Government of Namibia, through the Ministry of Agriculture, Water and Land Reform.

The PCLDs overall objective is “improving the land-based livelihoods of rural communities through the development of communal land and their better integration into the mainstream economy’’.

EU contributed 13.5 million EUR (243 million NAD) to the PCLD budget, for the implementation agreement with KfW and the Government of the Republic of Namibia.

At the handover event, Hon. Calle Schlettwein, Minister of Agriculture, Water and Land Reform (MAWLR) has described the German Namibian Cooperation and European Namibian Cooperation as “multi-layered, rock-hard and colourful” during the hand-over of ten new off-road vehicles to his ministry. ?

Before Namibia’s independence in 1990, huge portions of its inhabitants were not allowed to own commercially usable farmland. Since the 1990s, the Government has been implementing the ambitious Namibian Programme for Communal Land Development (PCLD). ?

The implementing Ministry (MAWLR) strives to improve land-based livelihoods and guarantee secure land tenure in communal areas. More than 500,000 Namibians have already benefitted from the PCLD. ?

On the ground, the programme has seen the development of infrastructure on 490,000 ha in eight regions till today. This includes various farm infrastructure such as the construction and rehabilitation of water-boreholes and pipelines. ?

Additional reporting: KFW-Namibia and German Embassy in Namibia