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Fate of foreigners owning land in Namibia to be announced soon

Xinhua, February 18, 2015 Adjust font size:

The fate of foreigners in Namibia owning land will be decided soon by Cabinet, the minister of land and resettlement Alpheus Naruseb told media Monday.

Although the ruling Swapo Party declared two years ago that foreigners should not own farms in Namibia, there is no law to this effect.

Currently, Namibia gives 99-year leases. This has raised anger among the people who have urged the government to reduce the lease period.

Naruseb told media that Cabinet would soon complete its report on the way forward regarding the issue of foreigners owning land in the country.

"As long as we as party functionaries have our wish list regarding the matter, it has to be transformed from a party resolution into a national law so that it can become applicable. Some things have become problematic in the country," Naruseb said.

Naruseb also said the Cabinet committee would look into both urban and farm lands.

"The committee is at the tail-end when it comes to completing the report and thereafter the nation will be informed accordingly, " the minister said.

He urged the people to remain patient and wait for the framework on land ownership.

In 2012, President Hifikepunye Pohamba told media that Namibians were frustrated because they do not own land because the willing-seller willing-buyer approach has failed to deliver.

The approach was agreed on during an all-stakeholders conference on land held in 1991.

Pohamba appealed to farmers to sell off farms to government so that it can redistribute to those seeking land.

Currently, former Swapo Party Youth League members who are calling their movement Affirmative Repositioning are calling for people across the country to submit applications for land in towns on Feb. 27 this year.

The youth caused a stir last year when they grabbed plots in one of Windhoek's upmarket suburb. There has since been similar actions at the coast town of Swakopmund where people have pegged off plots. Endi