Namibia’s Ministry of Agriculture has terminated a N$40 million ($2.4 million) contract with US agricultural technology company 6th Grain Corporation to deploy artificial intelligence and satellite imagery for crop monitoring, citing non-compliance with legal and administrative standards.
The decision follows an internal government review into how the deal was awarded, bringing a sudden end to a high-profile initiative designed to modernize the South West African nation’s food security infrastructure.
“The review established that the agreement did not meet the requisite legal and procedural requirements applicable to contractual arrangements entered into on behalf of the government,” said Romeo Muyunda, spokesperson for the Ministry of Agriculture. He added that a formal written notice of termination has been served to the Denver-based firm to “safeguard the interests of the Namibian state.”
Signed in June 2026, the one-year agreement was tasked with deploying satellite-based remote sensing, geospatial analytics, and machine learning to map and forecast yield for staple crops including maize, mahangu (pearl millet), sorghum, cowpea, and wheat. Beyond production monitoring, the project was intended to deliver drought-risk assessments, land-suitability analysis, and a geo-tagged database of local farmers.
The cancellation underscores growing sensitivities across African nations regarding procurement governance, data sovereignty, and the role of foreign entities in managing critical national agricultural data. Reports in July indicated that officials were investigating whether the deal bypassed proper bidding channels and whether senior leadership and Cabinet were adequately consulted.
6th Grain had defended the contract, stating that talks with the ministry had been ongoing since 2025 and that the initiative was donor-funded rather than drawn from Namibian tax revenue. The company maintained that the contract included a complete transfer of technology, software, and intellectual property, enabling local officials to run the system independently over time. The deal had also received backing from the US Embassy in Windhoek, which touted it as a model for bilateral commercial ties and technical capacity building.
The termination leaves Namibia’s agricultural ministry to re-evaluate its digital transformation roadmap while ensuring future vendor engagements strictly adhere to statutory procurement frameworks.
