Ondjiva – At least 867,000 people in the province of Cunene are affected by the 2021/2022 drought, the director of the Provincial Office for Social Action, Family and Gender Equality, Elizeth Mwamelunge said on Friday.

Speaking to ANGOP, ahead of celebration of June 17, World Day for the fight against drought and desertification, the leader said that the phenomenon has affected, with great incidence, the municipalities of Curoca, Cahama and Ombadja.

According to the official, the drought has caused the emigration of families to areas along the banks of the Cunene River and to the Republic of Namibia, due to the lack of income in agricultural activity caused by the non-occurrence cyclical rainfall.

However, she pointed out that in order to cope with the situation, the Government created, last March, the Assistance Center for Drought Victims, located in Calueque, where three meals a day, water, assistance medical and drug, birth registration are available.

She said that more than a 1000 families are in the respective center and, among these, 120 are involved in agricultural production, with the establishment of the experimental field of 11 hectares, in order to have the food available for self-sufficiency.

The director also underlined the implementation of the structuring programme for the construction of the water transfer system of the Cunene river, in the locality of Cafu, which will make it possible to reduce the effects of the drought.

The respective canal, she said, will allow access to water for 235,000 people in the municipalities of Ombadja, Cuanhama and Namacunde, as well as the watering of 250,000 animals and the irrigation of 5,000 hectares of agricultural fields.

She also said that in addition to overcoming the difficulties of access to water for human, animal and agricultural consumption, the canal will allow the creation of green spaces and reduce the incidence of drought and desertification in the region.

Since 1998, drought has affected the south of the country, mainly the province of Cunene. But in 2018/2019 this phenomenon was the most devastating in the last 24 years in history.

The acute crisis of 2018 affected 880,172 people and one million head of cattle, causing the death of 30,000 animals, including cattle, goats and pigs.

Source: Angola Press News Agency