There is an investment opportunity in the country to increase local production of fruits, potatoes, wheat and maize for local and export market, Manager of Horticulture at the Namibian Agronomic Board’s (NAB), Emilie Abraham told potential investors in Davos, Switzerland on Thursday.
Presenting Namibia’s trade and investment opportunities in the crop industry, Abraham said Namibia is a net importer of agronomic products, importing about 96 per cent of fruits, 96 per cent of wheat and 65 per cent of potatoes, which makes the crop sub-sector underdeveloped and thus a huge investment opportunity.
She called on the potential investors to come on board and take up the opportunity to increase local production of selected fruit lines, potatoes, wheat and maize for local and export market and eventually create jobs for the community.
“There are missing links in a crop value chain such as value addition for fruits and vegetables and local agri input production, which include fertilizers, planting materials, agro-chemicals, amongst others. Abraham highlighted untapped opportunities within the crop sector, such as nuts and oil seed production; the production of fruits such as banana and avocados amongst others,” she said.
She further added that,the export of fruits and vegetables has grown and the total horticulture export for the financial year of 2020/2021 stands at N.dollars 1.0 billion, of which table grapes contributed a lion share of 830 million N.dollars, followed by 66 million for round tomatoes, onions N.dollars 35 million and dates N.dollars 33 million.
Europe was mentioned as a leading export destination for table grapes and blueberries, while the majority of horticulture products were exported to South Africa.
Additionally, Abraham said trade opportunities still exist for palm dates, table grapes and onions, expounding that the NAB ensures that products exported are inspected for quality and food safety.
President Hage Geingob led the Namibian delegation comprised of cabinet ministers and private sectors heads.
While in Davos, Namibians showcased the country’s green hydrogen potential and other identified investment avenues such as infrastructure; transport and logistics; tourism; agriculture as well as oil and gas.
Source: The Namibian Press Agency
