WINDHOEK — Khomas Governor Laura McLeod-Katjirua has emphasized the need to address the expanding scope of land demands to support Namibia’s socioeconomic growth. Her statement came during a stakeholder consultative workshop by the Ministry of Agriculture, Water and Land Reform, focusing on reviewing the criteria for the national resettlement policy in Windhoek on Tuesday.

According to Namibia Press Agency (NAMPA), McLeod-Katjirua pointed out the pressing demands from dispossessed communities for faster land delivery and calls from the youth for land to drive economic development. The workshop followed the Cabinet’s approval in May this year of the Revised National Resettlement Policy, set to run from 2023 to 2033. This policy revision was necessitated to incorporate resolutions from the second land conference held in 2018, which emphasized issues of landlessness due to dispossession and challenges in maintaining resettlement farms post-acquisition.

The governor stressed the importance of empowering women, marginalized people, and vulnerable groups and integrating veterans into productive society as a national interest. She noted issues such as overcrowding of livestock and land degradation in some communities, highlighting the need for relief measures and actions to prevent further degradation.

McLeod-Katjirua also referred to the Cabinet-approved resettlement strategy and the new policy’s adoption of three resettlement models—high, moderate, and low economic models—coupled with an enhanced assistance package. She emphasized the significance of the resettlement criteria review, aiming to cater to dispossessed communities, youth, women, marginalized groups, generational farm workers, and large communal farmers.

The Namibia resettlement program is a voluntary initiative that relocates people from areas with insufficient resources to places offering a better standard of living, allowing applicants to choose their preferred resettlement area.