Namibia country report

5.2.5 MarketingTable 21 summarises livestock sales in both regions in the year preceding the fieldwork.Beneficiaries in Hardap recorded higher sales of livestock units than those in Omaheke.This is not significant only in terms of absolute units sold, but also in terms of what thissays about livestock production in the two regions. The data suggests that beneficiariesin Hardap did not sell any breeding stock with the exception of two cows. This was instark contrast to the findings in Omaheke where the sale of cows and heifers appeared to bea very common practice. Selling breeding stock reduces a livestock farmer’s breeding nucleuswith potentially negative results for the medium term. The sale of 26 cows in Omahekesuggests that the urgency of generating cash income was greater than the need to invest inorder to increase cattle production. Old cows have to be sold once their productive yearshave ended, but they should be replaced with heifers to maintain or expand a herd.Table 21: FURS livestock sales in Omaheke and Hardap, 2007/08OmahekeHardapCattle Weaners 2 4Heifers 5 0Oxen 6 8Cows 26 2Sheep Lambs/weaners 0 65Ewes 2 618Young males 2 92Goats Kids/weaners 0 105Nannies 0 927Young males 2 92Although the survey data does not bear this out, qualitative interviews suggested stronglythat many beneficiaries were selling weaners rather than oxen. Matthias marketed weanersonce a year. One of his reasons for selling weaners was that his two camps were too small.By selling weaners after six months or so, he relieved pressure on grazing to some extent.The other reason was that weaners gave him a more regular revenue stream in the shortterm. Selling 30 or 40 weaners per annum gave him enough income to live on. He sold smallstock only on an ad hoc basis. He said that these animals were basically just running on hisland, providing meat for his family and the jackals. He was also milking his cows to makeomaere (sour milk) for his family’s own consumption. He did not sell any milk or omaere.Goat sales in Hardap reflected the skewed distribution of small stock. Four farmers in thesample sold a total of 927 nannies. One farmer sold only 9 nannies, one sold 18, and twosold 150 and 750 respectively. Thus there was a very uneven spread among beneficiarieswith regard to small-stock sales, and only the four biggest owners sold stock. The patternamong sheep farmers was similar, with only the biggest owners selling stock.Livestock were sold to cover a wide spectrum of needs. In Omaheke, calves were sold tohelp relatives financially, heifers were sold to buy implements and food and to repay loans,cows were sold to buy goods and repay loans and cover travel costs, oxen were sold to buygoods, and goats were sold to cover travel costs. As herds in Omaheke consisted mostly of104 ● Livelihoods after land reform: Namibia country report (2010)