After the expropriation,
all farming including cattle raising and a multimillion-dollar
flower export business was halted.
In an advertisement placed in a government newspaper, the
Agriculture ministry on behalf of the Ministry of Lands
yesterday invited tenders from "experienced and reputed
engineering companies for the assessment of rehabilitation
required for existing irrigation infrastructure" on
farm Ongombo West.
The farm is situated 40 kilometres east of Windhoek.
It was the first one to be expropriated in Namibia after
labour unions demanded this following a dispute between
the farm owner with workers.
No farming is taking place on the farm, which was owned
by the Wiese family for over 90 years.
For the the past four years, all infrastructure, including
the large green houses for the defunct flower export business,
has deteriorated.
The six erstwhile farm workers, who were resettled on a
portion of the Ongombo West, are unemployed.
They have no money to farm and are doing temporary jobs
on surrounding farms.
"The flower farming is to be revived again," an
official in the Agriculture Ministry told The Namibian yesterday,
speaking on condition of anonymity.
"We are aware of the delicate issue, since the previous
owners exported arum lilies to the Netherlands worth several
millions of Namibia dollars annually," the official
stated.
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