Day: November 21, 2023

Taarah Shalyefu has been re-elected as Ongwediva mayor and will lead the council for the next 12 months.

His fellow Swapo councillor, Ulalia Katonyala, retained her position as deputy mayor of the town, while Naemi Amuthenu (Swapo), Jona Helao (IPC) and Fabiam George (Swapo) remain members of the management committee.

Meanwhile, Mathews Tiyaho and Ottillie Haitota, both from IPC, are ordinary members of the seven-member Ongwediva Town Council office bearers.

George was also re-elected as chairperson of the management committee.

In his acceptance speech, Shalyefu reaffirmed his commitment to continue advocating for hard work, innovation and improved corporate governance, particularly accountability, integrity and transparency as they render services to the people.

‘We have a number of important issues that require our collective inputs and decisions. Looking at concerns, complaints and outstanding issues related to land distribution in the town is evident that we should think fast and find solutions to t
hese problems,’ he said.

Shalyefu indicated that their role in ensuring that they guide and advocate for development from Government has never been more important than it is right now.

According to Shalyefu, although this assignment is somewhat challenging, with the support of fellow councillors, they will make a significant difference in the leadership arena.

He stated that as councillors they should always be mindful that the electorate expects quality service delivery and support from them, and they consistently expect them to listen to them when they approach them, therefore they should deliver to the best of their abilities.

Source: The Namibian Press Agency

Minister of Education, Arts and Culture Ester Anna Nghipondoka officially launched the IMN Technology Mentorship Institute (IMN Tech) in the capital on Monday, aimed at equipping Namibians with technological skills.

In her address, Nghipondoka said the Namibian education sector lags behind in terms of global trends and standards in the provision of Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts, and Mathematics (STEAM) education, which is inclusive of robotics, coding, artificial intelligence, internet of things, and other smart technologies.

‘STEAM education contributes to the development of cognitive and non-cognitive skills such as computational thinking, logical reasoning, new-age technology, product design, design thinking, self-awareness, collaboration, creativity, resilience and communication, opening doors to careers in medicine, product design, business entertainment, fashion, education, agriculture, mining, to mention but a few,’ Nghipondoka said.

The education minister said for the 2023/2024 financial
year, the Ministry of Education has budgeted N.dollars 30 million to procure information technology hardware and software for schools as per the national conference on education implementation plan. This translates to N.dollars 750 000 per computer lab at 42 secondary schools across the country (three schools per region).

Each computer lab will be equipped with 40 desktop computers, one uninterrupted power supply, network accessories, one teacher laptop, a wireless printer, and a server, giving a total of 1 680 desktop computers, she said.

Also speaking during the inauguration was IMN Tech founder Irvine Ndjavera, who said the business is only a month old.

‘We did not start from scratch; we committed and partnered with a company or institution similar to ours in India called Avishkaar,’ Ndjavera said.

IMN Tech was started to solve the educational technological skills gaps from school level to the job market and provide sustainable technological business solutions needed to develop Namibia in a fourth indu
strial revolution-compatible country, he said.

‘IMN’s tech vision is to assist the Namibian educational sector, prepare, and train competent, technologically advanced Namibians who are ready to develop a competitive Namibian economy in the global space of the fourth industrial revolution, while re-skilling the Namibian workforce to adapt to the job market requirements,’ Ndjavera said.

Source: The Namibian Press Agency

The Oshikoto regional councillor of the Oniipa Constituency, Vilho Nuunyango has confirmed that the Oshigambo settlement will be upgraded to a town as part of the Rural Development Policy that was established in 2006.

Nuunyango during a formal hearing on the proposed upgrade of the settlement in the Oshikoto Region on Monday said that in a democratic world, people have the right to express their opinions on what could be good or bad for development.

Nuunyango said the town could be established ‘as soon as possible’ once they deal with administration issues, during the 2023/2024 financial year.

‘We are happy for the Rural Development Policy as it is a responsive tool to the rural economy in reducing poverty and improving the livelihood of rural communities,’ Nuunyango said.

He made the announcement after a concerned group from Oshigambo that consisted of 47 members objected to the upgrade.

The group representative, Jona Mushelenga noted that Namibia is a democratic country and as such, everyone has a rig
ht to express their opinion. He said there has been a lack of proper consultation regarding the matter by the stakeholders.

Mushelenga said there are environmental and socio-economic impacts on local communities, and this raises concern about the sustainability of the wellbeing of local communities.

He also raised concern about towns that were downgraded to village councils in recent years for failing to meet the required standards.

Mushelenga stated that 99 per cent of Oshigambo residents would not be able to cope with living in a town as there is a high number of unemployment or underemployment.

‘It is only one per cent of our residents who can keep up with the living standards of a town, the rest are weak and underprivileged,’ said Mushelenga.

He also raised concerns about the water scarcity in the area and what residents are planning to do to resolve the crisis.

‘We are planning to dig a water point… NamWater is no longer a reliable source of supply of water,’ he said.

Mushelenga on behalf of the g
roup requested that the upgrading of Oshigambo be subjected to further scrutiny, saying they trust that the Oshikoto Regional Council will recognise the significance of their concern.

Source: The Namibian Press Agency

The scope of land demand has expanded, and numerous land demands must be met to support Namibia’s common socioeconomic growth, Khomas Governor Laura McLeod-Katjirua has said.

Dispossessed communities are also demanding quicker land delivery, and the youth are calling for land to drive economic development, McLeod-Katjirua said at a stakeholder consultative workshop by the Ministry of Agriculture, Water and Land Reform to review the criteria for the national resettlement policy, held in Windhoek on Tuesday.

Cabinet in May this year approved the Revised National Resettlement Policy that will run from 2023 to 2033, replacing the 1991 to 2001 National Resettlement Policy.

The revision was required to include resolutions taken during the second land conference held in 2018 that placed emphasis on landlessness through dispossession and the inability to maintain resettlement farms due to a lack of resources after acquisition.

McLeod-Katjirua said it is in the national interest of the country to encourage the em
powerment of women, marginalised people, and vulnerable groups, as well as to continue the pursuit of integrating veterans into a productive society.

‘In some communities, we witness overcrowding of livestock and land degradation, hence there is a need to relief pressure from such communities and to avoid land degradation,’ she said.

She noted that she is reliably informed of the Cabinet-approved resettlement strategy, and that the new policy has taken a different approach by adopting three resettlement models, including the high, moderate, and low economic models, as well as a better assistance package.

‘The review of the resettlement criteria is of paramount importance to us representatives of different stakeholders. We must ensure that by the end of today, we would have aligned our criteria to cater for dispossessed communities, youth, women, marginalised groups, generational farm workers and large communal farmers,’ she said.

The Namibia resettlement programme involves the movement of people from an a
rea with insufficient resources to a place which is more likely to provide a better standard of living. It is a voluntary programme for which people apply and choose their preferred area of resettlement.

Source: The Namibian Press Agency

The Goethe-Institut and the University of Namibia (UNAM) recently hosted the closing event of the ‘Museum Outreach Programme’ aimed at strengthening civil society and cultural diversity in Namibia through social cohesion, inter-ethnic dialogue, and cultural tolerance.

The project was funded by the European Union with approximately N.dollars 4 million and the Goethe-Institut with approximately N.dollars 1.3 million and jointly implemented by the Goethe-Institut Namibia and the UNAM over 46 months.

EU Ambassador to Namibia Ana-Beatriz Martins told Nampa on Tuesday that important achievements under the project include among others the strengthening of cultural rights particularly of marginalised and indigenous communities.

She pointed out that strengthening community-based museums empowers local communities and indigenous minorities to express their culture, preserve their traditions and provide a sense of belonging and the opportunity to explore their roots.

The ambassador further encouraged Namibians to s
upport and cherish the invaluable community-based and community-run museums.

‘Let us continue to visit, volunteer, and engage with them, ensuring that our rich tapestry of cultures and traditions remains intact and thrives,’ she said.

Dennis Schroeder, director of the Goethe-Institut Namibia, on his part said the initiative focused on three pillars to transform Namibia’s museums and heritage sector, which included transforming community-based museums into interactive spaces, empowering local community-based museums into interactive spaces, empowering local communities and indigenous minorities through conservation training, and professionalizing heritage practitioners.

Source: The Namibian Press Agency