Windhoek — Already concerned Namibian livestock and crop farmers had to hear it from the horse's mouth last week that the devastating El Niño-induced drought, which affected about 40 million people in the Southern African Development Community (SADC) in 2016, is likely to strike again during the 2017/18 season.
The El Niño-induced drought in 2016 was the worst in 35 years after the rains failed for two consecutive seasons. Severe drought conditions claimed lives and means of subsistence. Experts from the SADC Secretariat last week expressed fear that although good rains have been received in the northern half of the region, the lack of rain in the southern half of the region has caused delays in planting and harvesting due to water stress in some areas, including Namibia.
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