Government to prioritise local producers for food supply tenders
Agro-Marketing and Trade Agency (AMTA) recently invited all interested producers of white maize, mahangu, dry beans, fruits, vegetables and eggs, who are not yet registered with AMTA to register in order to be prioritised when it comes to supplying food to government institutions.
This comes after the government cabinet directed that government institutions should include, a qualification requirement in their food supply tender specification, which stipulates that food supplied to government institutions should be sourced from local producers and suppliers who sell products that are produced locally.
Additionally, the 2nd Land Conference held in October 2018 resolved that there should be a special arrangement for the procurement of agricultural produce that are produced in the country, especially those from the north of the cordon fence/red line through the public procurement system.
Hence, all public entities are directed to include provisions in their tender specifications to ensure that entities bidding to supply food products to government institutions must source meat, fresh produce, cereal and flour from Namibian producers.
The agriculture ministry has been directed to practically implement this decision through AMTA and provide regular feedback to cabinet on the implementation of the decision. AMTA has urged producers to accordingly register at their nearest AMTA office on or before 30 August.
