AMTA urged to please local producers

With efforts to establish a market for local producers, and arrange imports of much-needed fresh produce into the country, the Agro-Marketing and Trading Agency (AMTA) has entered into a public-private partnership agreement with Fysal Fresh Produce to operate from the national fresh produce hubs nationwide.

A government entity, AMTA is ambitious that Fysal's experience in the trade of fresh produce will be beneficial to drive the agro-trading agency's mandate of assisting local producers to have a market for their products by targeting both the Angolan and South African markets where Fysal also operates.

On Monday, AMTA launched their partnership with Fysal at the Ongwediva Fresh Produce Business Hub which was attended by former president Hifikepunye Pohamba, the regional governors for Oshana, Oshikoto and Kavango West, and the business community of the north.

Pohamba said that in order to encourage local farmers to produce, agents and AMTA must be able to pay farmers value for their products and not buy products at a giveaway prices.

“If we are to encourage people of this country to produce let us make them happy.

Whenever they produce they must get offers that will make them want to produce again.

What is the point of people producing but their produce is going to be sold at giveaway prices?” Pohamba asked.

Pohamba said that this year he has been told by mahangu farmers in the Kavango that they produced a many tonnes of mahangu but they decided not to sell this because AMTA was offering them a reduced price for their product.

“If this is true, you do not expect these people to produce anything this rainy season because there is nothing motivating them to produce. Let this not to be true because it is against our national objectives,” he said.

The AMTA CEO, Lucas Lungameni, said that by having Fysal on board, the hubs will be able to boost local production. It was also highlighted that the aim was to ensure that Fysal includes local produce whenever they are transporting fresh produce to Angola and South Africa, and when they return they bring along products which are not locally produced.

“We are gathered here today as stakeholders of the fresh produce sector to witness the official welcoming of one of the biggest marketing agents launching their operations with us.

Fysal will be our biggest agent that will be operating from our national fresh produce business hubs.

We are confident in their rich and vast experience in the fresh produce industry and we believe it will boost local production, as well as consumption, of local fresh produce,” Lungameni said.

AMTA has two national fresh produce hubs with modern storage facilities at Ongwediva and Rundu, and a collection point at Windhoek. The Ongwediva Fresh Produce Business Hub was inaugurated by Pohamba on 4 May 2013. Fysal has now joined three agents, Stampriet Fresh Produce, Afri Fresh and Olushandja Horticulture Producers, who are currently operating from the Ongwediva hub.

After touring the Ongwediva hub on Monday, Pohamba said that he was happy to see that what the government thought when they were establishing the AMTA is moving in the right direction.

Fysal's group chairperson Thomas Indji said that for the past two decades Fysal Fresh Produce has served the northern regions with pride and as they go forward, they seek to serve them even better by creating a ready market for the local producers.

“This has been made possible by our strategic partner AMTA who have afforded us an opportunity to serve as a wholesale agent at Ongwediva, Rundu and Windhoek. Our aims are to extend economic benefits to the northern regions through the stimulation of the domestic fresh produce activities,” Indji said.

ILENI NANDJATO