The USAID-funded Reach Namibia project launched the Adolescent and Youth Livelihoods and Entrepreneurship Accelerator (ALIVE) Hub at Rundu, on Wednesday.

The initiative aimed to equip the youth with entrepreneurial skills by establishing sustainable businesses was launched in partnership with the Ministry of Sport, Youth and National Service (MSYNS), Nkurenkuru, and Rundu town councils.

Speaking during the official launch, USAID Acting Country Representative Dr. Rockfeler Herisse said ALIVE is an initiative to equip young people to address their immediate and future challenges to establish a business.

‘The ALIVE hub is part of the United States government’s ‘Reach Namibia’ project and offers a space for young people to access computers, printers, consulting, and other business-related services,’ he said.

The hub space he explained will serve as a training ground where young people can develop innovative ideas, design products or solutions, and refine them through testing and feedback.

This he said, will
help them to increase their income and establish viable, resilient businesses.

The ALIVE hub in Rundu is located in the MSYNS building while the hub at Nkurenkuru is located within the Trade Fair Centre.

Herisse said the ALIVE hub in Rundu will further provide outreach services in the districts of Andara, Nyangana, and Ncamagoro to ensure that young people across the entire Kavango Region can access and benefit from these services.

‘The partnership between the stakeholders provides a foundation to ensure that the centres are not a temporary intervention, but instead a transformative and lasting investment in the economic and social development of communities,’ Herisse said.

Source: The Namibia News Agency