Category: General

The Central North Regional Electricity Distributor (Cenored) has revealed that it will embark on a Token Identifier (TID) project to have the current system used on all its pre-paid electricity meters, upgraded.

According to Cenored Communication and Marketing Officer Josua Hamunyela in an interview with Nampa on Wednesday, the new system to run for the next 32 years, will enhance the prepaid electricity meters in the regions where it the electricity distributor operates, namely Otjozondjupa, Omaheke, Kunene, and Oshikoto.

Hamunyela, who is updating Cenored’s clients on the new project at the Okakarara Annual Trade Fair, said: “The new system is required since the old system which had a lifespan of approximately 32 years, has expired.”

He assured all clients that the system upgrade would not result in any additional charges or affect the performance of pre-paid electricity.

He also stated that all pre-paid meters will be effected by the TID rollover on 24 November 2024 and that any tokens generated after this date will be rejected by meters that have not been upgraded.

“This process will be carried out by a Cenored task team who will be identifiable when they visit your homes by having an identification card on them, as well as a Cenored or TID branded clothing. Through this, we are trying to assure Namibians that the project is not a scam but rather forms part of the roll-out project,” he said.

Hamunyela said the commencement date of the project is yet to be communicated and only the towns in the regions where it operates, and where pre-paid meters are used, will be affected.

Source: The Namibian Press Agency

The Automobile Association of Namibia (AAN) on Wednesday launched the third edition of its ‘Together for Safer Roads’ campaign Soccer Day, which takes place in Swakopmund on 18 November.

First launched in November 2021, the campaign is a collaboration with the Namibia Road Safety Forum, the National Road Safety Council, and the Motor Vehicle Accident Fund.

It provides an opportunity for public passenger transport such as taxis and long-distance drivers, traffic law enforcement agencies such as the Namibian Police Force, Roads Authority traffic inspectors, as well as municipal police services from Windhoek, Henties Bay, Swakopmund, Walvis Bay and Otjiwarongo to synergise on the soccer pitch.

AAN Managing Director Hileni Tjivikua during the launch of the event sponsored by Vivo Energy Namibia said: “The main prerogative for this would be to bring a sense of harmony, instil mutual respect, build and sustain the relationship between traffic law enforcement agencies and public passenger transport providers, and ultimately enhance abidance to related laws and improve road safety in our country.”

She said the event is aimed at reaching the objectives of Pillar 4 of the Namibian Chapter of the Second Decade of Action for Road Safety 2021-2030, which specifies safer road users.

“Furthermore, the interaction between the public passenger transport drivers and law enforcement agencies will potentially enhance and change driver behaviour and attitude for the better, thus ensuring safer road usage and a resultant decrease in road crash casualties,” she said.

Swakopmund Mayor Dina Namubes welcomed the initiative, emphasising the much-needed harmony it will lead to between the public transport providers and law enforcers.

“I was specifically pleased with this initiative as I believe that this interaction between the public passenger transport drivers and law enforcement agencies will enhance and change driver behaviour and attitude as it will create mutual respect and understanding between the parties. This in turn will definitely ensure safer road usage and subsequently, decrease road crash casualties,” she said.

The soccer day will precede the launch of the national Festive Season Road Safety Campaign and World Day of Remembrance for Road Traffic Victims.

Source: The Namibian Press Agency

Works and Transport Minister John Mutorwa on Tuesday announced the construction of a traffic circle along with a dual carriageway entering Rundu, at the intersection of the Trans-Zambezi Highway and Eugene Kakukuru Street.

The development valued at N.dollars 34 million is aimed at reducing car accidents and improving the movement of vehicles entering and leaving the town centre.

The minister, during a media briefing at Rundu, also announced the commissioning of phase two of the Charlie Cutline road project of the Mankumpi Constituency in the Kavango West Region.

“What is being put here is for a good purpose. When you enter the town of Rundu from Ndama informal settlement, the road is too narrow thus the vehicles are congested. The Roads Authority (RA) has thus contracted China Henan International Cooperation Group, which has already commenced with the widening of the intersection from a single carriage to a dual carriageway for 150 metres into Rundu town,” he said.

Also speaking at the media briefing was RA Chief Executive Officer Conrad Lutombi, who said the plan to construct a traffic circle along with a dual carriageway on the intersection of the Trans-Zambezi Highway and Eugene Kakukuru Street dates back seven years.

“The intention at first was for us to erect traffic lights but then we realised that with traffic lights the congestion could be even more serious, as you would have traffic passing without turning into town, thus we had to do a proper traffic assessment,” he said.

Lutombi said the assessment also incorporated plans for the town’s development in the next 10 to 15 years.

The construction of the traffic circle has already started and will run for six months.

Lutombi said upon completion, the project is expected to significantly boost the economy of Rundu as it will promote social and economic growth.

He added that Rundu is experiencing fast growth in residential and industrial infrastructure and that currently, there are several ongoing residential developments exerting an unprecedented increase in heavy traffic.

Source: The Namibian Press Agency

The Windhoek High Court has ordered former Windhoek Mayor Job Amupanda to fully disclose his financial status in his ongoing lawsuit against the government.

Amupanda is suing the government over the veterinary cordon fence, also known as the red line. He wants the court to declare that the erection of the veterinary cordon fence has not been carried out in terms of any law and that it is unconstitutional.

He has since lodged a counter application to stop the high court from ordering him to pay the defendant’s legal fees, should he be unsuccessful in his redline challenge.

According to Amupanda, the lawsuit is of public importance, underpinned by social justice and not for personal or political gain. He further argues that a protective costs order will ensure that the parties litigate on equal footing. Amupanda has indicated that he anticipates the costs of this action to run into millions of dollars, adding that he has limited financial resources and as such, will not be able to pay the defendant’s legal costs if the matter dismissed with costs.

Judge Shafimana Ueitele on Tuesday found that Amupanda did not satisfy all the requirements for his request, in that he did not fully disclose his financial situation. He has been ordered to submit his amended documents on 12 September 2023. A status hearing has been scheduled for 26 September 2023.

“Based on the financial situation presented by Mr Amupanda, the court is not in the position to arrive at a conclusion as to whether or not it is just and fair for the court to grant a protective costs order in his favour, and what conditions must be imposed if indeed the protective costs order is granted,”Ueitele remarked.

Source: The Namibian Press Agency

The City of Windhoek (CoW) Council has approved the identification of seven houses in the Khomasdal and Katutura residential areas that were built in 1960 as heritage sites from the apartheid era.

The ordinary council meeting held on 31 August 2023 resolved that the nomination and conservation of seven houses that are more than 50 years old be declared as heritage sites telling the social, political and educational icons’ stories of the apartheid era in the 1960s.

According to the meeting minutes issued on Tuesday by CoW, the council said while the city centre has monuments and statues, there are no official heritage resources in Katutura or Khomasdal.

“Therefore, the houses that will be selected based on the significance of their first occupants, should be transformed as the apartheid-era cultural precinct by developing a trail around the townships of Herero; Damara; Wambo; Donkerhoek; Gemengde; and Khomasdal.”

During apartheid, the South African government implemented a policy of forced removals, which resulted in the displacement of hundreds of thousands of people from their homes and the disruption of entire communities. The aim of this policy was to create separate racial and ethnic enclaves, with whites occupying the most desirable areas of the city, and people of colour confined to the periphery.

This legacy of segregation and exclusion persists in many cities in southern Africa, including Windhoek.

“The main goal of this project is to transform the apartheid-era legacy of the Katutura and Khomasdal townships into vibrant hubs offering employment creation opportunities, as well as experiences for people to immerse themselves in Namibian culture and art,” Council indicates.

It noted that the houses will be utilised as historical icon museums, showcasing the people of a specific area, through cultural performances, traditional food, traditional chores, and arts and crafts, including accommodation providing homestay experiences for visitors to stay with local people.

The council further noted that similar projects have been successfully accomplished in other southern African cities, such as Johannesburg, which nominated and preserved the late Nelson Mandela family home in Soweto as a national heritage institution.

Source: The Namibian Press Agency

Stakeholders with an interest in the adjustment of the National Minimum Wage (NMW) have until Friday to submit their written representations.

The National Minimum Wage Commission, through its Chairperson Professor Adriaan van der Walt, issued a notice on 1 August 2023 inviting all interested parties to submit written representations concerning possible adjustment to the NMW in 2024.

“The written comments/representations concerning possible adjustments to the National Minimum Wage will be considered by the Commission before it publishes its annual report and recommendations on the annual review of the national minimum wage later in the year,” Van der Walt said.

The invite for written submissions is conducted in accordance with section 6(2) of the National Minimum Wage Act, No. 9 of 2018.

The current rate of NMW as announced by Employment and Labour Minister Thulas Nxesi in February 2023 jumped from R23.19 (in 2022) to R25.42 for each ordinary hour worked.

The annual rate came into effect from 01 March 2023.

The existing National Minimum Wage determination now includes the vulnerable sectors of farm workers and the domestic workers – whom with effect from last year were also aligned with the NMW rates.

The National Minimum Wage Act applies to all workers and their employers except members of the South African National Defence Force, the National Intelligence Agency and the South African Secret Service.

The act does not apply to a volunteer, who is a person who performs work for another person and who does not receive or is not entitled to receive, any remuneration for his or her service

A fine maybe imposed on an employer who paid an employee less than the national minimum wage.

The primary functions of the Commission is to review the NMW and make recommendations annually for its adjustment, and to investigate the impact of the NMW on the economy, collective bargaining and income differentials among others.

Representations should reach the directorate: Employment Standards, Department of Employment and Labour, Private Bag X117, Pretoria, 0001 or be sent to [email protected]

Source: South African Government News Agency