Author(s): Stewart Kaupa, Albert Kamuinjo and Shali Shindume
Public -Private Partnerships (PPP) are the long-term contractual relationships between the government and a private partner to provide all or some part of the delivery of agricultural infrastructure and services. Such kind of arrangements have been used to provide the framing structure through which to bring the public and private sectors together to complement each other’s strengths in the financing and provision of agricultural services. With this arrangement being a relatively new model in the agricultural sector in Namibia, this study aimed at identifying and exploring different strategies aimed at improving the PPPs initiatives in Agriculture to ensure food security in Namibia. The study used Mashare Irrigation Scheme in the Kavango region as a case study. The study employed a qualitative research approach in order to get an in-depth and detailed understanding of the operations of the PPPs in agriculture. Interviews and focus groups were conducted with the public as well as the private sectors at Mashare Irrigation Scheme. The study found that the government needs to draw long-term lease agreements in order to attract more private partners into this arrangement. The study also found that there is a need to put in place implementation and monitoring policies to ensure a good understanding between the two partners. Based on the findings, this study recommends that the PPP initiatives in agriculture should not only be restricted to crop production, there is a need to diversify it to animal production as well, as there is a lot of potential in this sector.