The recent cold weather in Namibia has Etunda producers concerned. August has surprised the region with frosty weather, with some parts of the country experiencing rainfall and hail. The Etunda green scheme in the Omusati region receives its irrigation water from the Calueque Dam through a canal.
The 64 small-scale producers at the scheme say they have suffered losses due to the extreme cold.
“This year, due to climate change and global warming, which resulted in the fractuation of normal temperatures of the area to drop to zero last week, producers experienced catastrophic losses of crops, such as tomatoes, sweet potatoes, butternut and young mango seedlings,” said one farmer.
“In the past, farmers in this area could plant any crop throughout the year, so climate change has caught us all by surprise. We have lost hectares of crops. It is time for our farmers to go back to the drawing board, and to adjust their cropping calendars, and to not underestimate Mother Nature.”
Source: namibian.com.na