‘Livestock farming is an identity’
Ngaruka expounds on passion for farming
"I draw my inspiration from the fact that our livelihood is deeply, irreversibly depended on livestock farming," the part-time farmer said.
To succeed in farming, you need time and skills, and to be able to get the basics right. These are the words of Erastus Ngaruka, a part-time livestock, poultry and crop farmer from Epukiro in the Omaheke Region.
Ngaruka grew up farming and believes that livestock farming in his community is a tradition or a culture.
“However, it goes with passion as well. I have a strong passion for farming. I tend to draw my inspiration from the fact that our livelihood is deeply, irreversibly depended on livestock farming; that it is our identity, pride and socio-economic base,” he said.
He added that farming is a source of income for many things at the household level, inclusive of education and social well-being.
Diversification
According to Agribank, he farms on communal land at the Okomumbonde village. He farms with Damara sheep, Kahalari red goats, Bonsmara cross cattle, Australorp chickens, greyhound dogs and some vegetables.
Ngaruka also makes fodder for his livestock and sells the surplus from his cultivated pasture, crop residues and forage resources.
“This is an effort of farm enterprise diversification and an integrated farming system.”
Agribank added that he sells his cattle at auctions or on local permit days.
The sheep and goats are sold for breeding material to other farmers and as meat to individuals, cultural, traditional and other festive events.
His chickens are sold for breeding purposes and meat.
Meanwhile, Ngaruka said the dogs are part of the business and are used for breeding or are sold to other farms.
Agribank said he also owns a hammer mill, which he uses to process fodder for his livestock and generate income when processing for other farms.
Character building
The part-time farer said farming has contributed and continues to contribute positively towards his character building, and strengthens his passion, knowledge and skills.
He, therefore, joyfully considers it a career and a business, he said.
Some of the challenges Ngaruka has experienced during his farming journey include stock theft, drought, poisonous plants and predators.
He considers his best experiences to be breeding his animals to achieve certain traits of interest.
He added that he survived the previous drought years with minimum worries because he could produce and process fodder.
“Farming is the only undertaking that has and will continue to sustain our livelihoods and achieve food self-sufficiency.”