Why is agriculture difficult in most of the Namib Desert?

Agriculture is extremely difficult in the Namib Desert primarily due to severe water scarcity and unfavorable soil conditions.12

The region is one of the world's driest deserts, characterized by minimal and highly variable rainfall. Because water is the primary constraint on agriculture in this environment, consistent crop cultivation is largely impossible without irrigation, which is rarely viable.342

Furthermore, the physical landscape is largely unsuitable for farming. Large portions of the desert are either completely soilless, consisting of exposed bedrock, or covered by shifting sand dunes. Where soil does exist, it is often highly saline, impregnated with gypsum, or cemented by a hard layer of calcium carbonate known as calcrete. Arable land is extremely limited, restricted primarily to the floodplains and terraces of major rivers, which are subject to unpredictable and occasional inundation.1