The Minister of Agriculture, Water and Forestry, John Mutorwa, and his Permanent Secretary, Andrew Ndishishi, this week indicated that they are in the process of preparing a Cabinet submission on the future of small stock marketing in Namibia, the Namibia Agricultural Union (NAU) said in a statement.
Mutorwa and Ndishishi are aware of the urgency of the matter but request farmers to be patient, the statement said.

This follows the NAU’s request for the government, through the Ministry of Agriculture, to urgently come to a decision on the matter.
Ndishishi said a committee of permanent secretaries of agriculture, finance and trade already met and the submission for Cabinet is now being prepared by the Minister of Agriculture, the statement said.
Ndishishi did not elaborate on the proposal, which is set to be submitted to Cabinet. He indicated that the recommendation is in balance with the interest of all parties, as well as to serve the aims of government.
Ndishishi expressed his concern that the current estrangement between producers and small stock abattoirs is not in the interest of the industry. He also expressed his concern that the uncertainty could lead to a decline in production and investment in the industry.