Maggi Barnard
11 August 2003
Windhoek — COMMUNITIES in the Kunene Region are starting to feel the effects of the drought.
Livestock are virtually dying by the day, with the biggest problem being grazing rather than water.
In many areas there is no grass left, but the springs are still running.
However, communities digging for water have a problem.
Many water holes have dried up because of this year's poor rains.
When The Namibian visited the region recently, Chairman of the Orupembe conservancy, Uriparue Tjiningire, described the drought as very bad.
"The Himba people live off their cattle, which are dying fast. People are going hungry, as we are mainly meat eaters," he said.
At a homestead at Otjikondanvirongo, north-west of Sesfontein, three goats had died of hunger over the previous two days.
There was no grazing left in the area around the homestead.
When asked why they did not move to an area about 20 km away where there was still plenty of grass, the residents said there was no water there.
The spring at their homestead still had sufficient water.
Tjiningire said Government was handing out food aid, but not on a regular basis.
He said it was probably because they lived in such remote areas.
The last time he could remember receiving drought relief food was at the beginning of last year.
The Kunene Regional Rural Development Planner at Opuwo, Theodore Kazombiaze, said the drought relief programme only ran for six months and ended in April this year in the region.
According to him, during the six months since November more than 3 700 households, comprised of about 32 600 people, had received food on a monthly basis.
People from the five target groups had to register beforehand.
The target groups were the elderly (over 60 years), pregnant mothers, lactating mothers, children under five years and people with disabilities.
Each household received 50 kg of maize meal, three bottles of cooking oil and 12 dried fish per month.
Kazombiaze said the entire region was covered, including very remote areas.
According to an NGO official working in the Kunene Region, the drought had not yet reached the proportions of the severe one that occurred in the early 1980s.
Then, more than 80 per cent of livestock died leaving many families with no animals.
A large number of wild animals also died.
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