ytu Media Monitoring on Urban Development in Namibia

Media Monitoring on Urban Development in Namibia is a service provided by Development Workshop Namibia (DWN), a registered Namibian NGO with a focus on sustainable urban development and poverty reduction. DWN is part of a world-wide network of Development Workshop (DW) organisations with centres in Canada, Angola and France, and offices in Vietnam and Burkino Faso. It was founded in the 1970s by three architect students in the UK and has been funded by non-governmental organisations, private citizens, and national and international development organisations.

In Namibia, DWN’s activities focus on urban related research, effective urban planning for the urban poor, solutions to informal settlements, water & sanitation, and projects specifically targeting disadvantaged segments of the urban youth. Through 40 years of engagement on urban issues mainly in Africa and Asia, the DW network of organisations has acquired significant institutional knowledge and capacity and is well integrated in regional and international networks.

The Namibian media provide an important source of information on urban development processes in the country, highlighting current events, opportunities and challenges. The media further provide insight into the different views and perceptions of a variety of actors, be it from government, non- government, private sector, and individuals that reside in Namibia’s towns and settlements.

It is therefore hoped that DWN’s Media Monitoring service will provide insights into those different views, with potential use for a variety of institutions and decision-makers that work in the urban environment in Namibia.

The Media Monitoring service is currently provided on a monthly basis and monitors the following newspapers: The Namibian, Republikein, Namibian Sun, New Era, Windhoek Observer, Confidente, and Informante.

The articles are grouped into following categories: Compiled by Engel Heita 1. Urban Planning, Land & Housing Edited by: 2. Urban Infrastructure and Services Ester Veiko Produced by: 3. Livelihoods and Urban Economy Development Workshop Namibia 4. Environment & Human Health Address: The text of the news articles has not been altered and thus 18 Nachtigal Street reflects the opinion of the respective media outlets, and not PO Box 40723, Ausspannplatz Windhoek, Namibia that of DWN. We hope you find this service useful and 061 240 140 interesting. DWN is keen to improve the service and [email protected] welcomes suggestions and comments.

Yours sincerely,

Development Workshop Namibia With support from: Namibian Chamber of Environment

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Table of Contents

1 URBAN PLANNING, LAND & HOUSING ...... 4 1.1 NHE to upgrade informal settlement housing ...... 4 1.2 Shack dwellers praised for housing delivery ...... 4 1.3 Otjiwarongo to forcefully remove land grabbers ...... 5 1.4 Outapi land turned into informal settlement ...... 5 1.5 Henties residents question cheap land deals ...... 6 1.6 Opuwo to sell 60 serviced erven ...... 7 1.7 Land grabbers defiant ...... 7 1.8 Ray of hope for Mariental squatters ...... 8 1.9 Mariental informal settlements to be demarcated ...... 8 1.10 Windhoek rent prices remain high ...... 9 1.11 Omatando land owners to be compensated ...... 10 1.12 Walvis Bay to accelerate service delivery ...... 10 1.13 Katima Mulilo demolishes illegal structures ...... 11 1.14 Block E residents grab land ...... 11

2 URBAN INFRASTRUCTURE AND SERVICES ...... 13 2.1 Walvis Bay, Kranzberg railway progresses ...... 13 2.2 Desalination plant output hits record high ...... 13 2.3 Water saving: Windhoek nearly exceeds target ...... 14 2.4 Katima to repair flooded roads, streets ...... 14 2.5 Hardap irrigation cuts spark panic ...... 15 2.6 NaTIS to open in Omuthiya ...... 16 2.7 Omungwelume hostel nearly completed ...... 16 2.8 300 pupils without a roof over their heads ...... 17 2.9 Every drop still counts ...... 17 2.10 Sustainable use of Biomass strengthened ...... 18 2.11 Oshikoto grounds fleet as fuel account depleted ...... 19 2.12 Uiba-Oas community in dire need of water ...... 19 2.13 Same old, same old ...... 20 2.14 Tsumeb faces acute water shortage ...... 21 2.15 School in dire need of furniture ...... 21 2.16 Kunene solar plant completed ...... 21 2.17 Health woes in Kavango continue ...... 22 2.18 City should reduce illegal power connections ...... 23 2.19 Walvis Bay road signs vandalised ...... 24

3 LIVELIHOOD AND URBAN ECONOMY ...... 25 3.1 MTC unveils first innovation centre ...... 25 3.2 SFL donates business equipment to girls ...... 25 3.3 Drought has devastating multi-sectoral effects ...... 26 3.4 Meatco gets bulk of Norwegian guota ...... 27 3.5 Windhoek country club hits N$158m revenue ...... 27 3.6 Thousands of tourists expected at Walvis Bay ...... 28 3.7 Entrepreneur donates to pensioners and the unemployed ...... 28 3.8 Groot Aub languishes in poverty ...... 29 3.9 Priorities reopening of Rundu abattoir-Kerfu ...... 30 2

3.10 Windhoek East tackles unemployment ...... 30 3.11 Making a difference ...... 31 3.12 Stationery brings hope ...... 32 3.13 Rehoboth meat suppliers bemoan abattoir closer ...... 32 3.14 The warehouse theatre opening soon ...... 33 3.15 Katima abattoir to start with test slaughtering ...... 34 3.16 Mayor explains Babylon move ...... 34 3.17 Narubes lauds stakeholder support for feeding programme ...... 35 3.18 Nanso to help less privileged students...... 35 3.19 A beacon of hope ...... 36 3.20 B2Gold donates veterinary unit to Unam ...... 36

4 ENVIRONMENT & HUMAN HEALTH ...... 38 4.1 Agriculture ministry to revive orchards ...... 38 4.2 Less smoke, more income ...... 38 4.3 300 000 males targeted for circumcision ...... 39 4.4 Hepatitis E cases ...... 39 4.5 MTC hands over N$ 841 000 to fight GBV ...... 40 4.6 Opuo hospital without cleaning materials since April ...... 40 4.7 Zambezi veld fires cause havoc ...... 41 4.8 Elephant wonder in the desert ...... 41 4.9 EIF Funds make a difference for San communities ...... 42 4.10 Forestry stresses timber harvesting, transporting conditions ...... 42 4.11 New hospital wing at Okahandja still closed ...... 43 4.12 Surgeries delayed due to hospital staff shortage ...... 43 4.13 Swakopmund elephant collared ...... 44 4.14 Heavy storm causes massive damage in Tsumeb ...... 45

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1 Urban Planning, Land & Housing

1.1 NHE to upgrade informal settlement housing New Era|05/12/2019

The National Housing Enterprise (NHE) has embarked on a pilot project to upgrade informal settlement housing by building eight houses for people who have land ownership but still live in shacks. The eight houses will be built in Goreangab and Otjomuise. The houses will have two and three bedrooms and will cost NHE N$4 million. Construction is set to start in January 2020 and is expected to take four months.NHE acting CEO Nick Hibbert said land acquisition remains their toughest challenge and it is more prevalent in the localities where they have high demand of people who can afford NHE houses. Hibbert said they undertook to do this project in the informal settlements having looked at the increasing need for affordable housing especially in the informal settlements and previously disadvantaged suburbs. He said the concept was discussed and analysed in January 2019, taking into consideration several important factors such as clients’ affordability, land ownership and municipal arrears.He stated adverts were placed in the media, calling interested residents to register between 16 April 2019 and 10 May 2019. “We have then done preliminary evaluations, through which qualifying applicants were identified. NHE has undertaken to relax and waive some of its normal qualifying criteria such as collateral/deposit, income thresholds, as well as absorbing reasonable municipal arrears into the financing facility, in order to enable applicants to qualify,” he stated. Hibbert said the contracts were awarded to two contractors and each will build four houses. Hibbert said upon full implementation of the pilot project, NHE will do an analysis of the concept to determine how best it can be improved. He stated they hope to roll out the concept to other part of the city and other towns throughout the country. NangulaImene, a beneficiary for this project in Otjomuise told the media that she is excited that she is getting a brick house, as it is not easy living in a shack. She was speaking at the official handover of the project’s site held in Otjomuise. “Dust, snakes and everything come in the shack. It is not safe living in a shack. I am happy NHE is providing a house for us,” said Imene who said she applied for land in 2002 and her application was only approved by the City of Windhoek in 2012. Minister of Urban and Rural Development, PeyaMushelenga said the size and number of informal settlements around the country is undeniably on a rapid increase. Mushelenga said the situation is surely extreme in Windhoek, due to it being the capital city and major attraction for people seeking enhanced opportunities to improve their lives. “We cannot shy away from this fact and need to face the challenge head on. It is us, together with relevant stakeholders, who have the responsibility to find solutions to the housing needs facing our people. We know the key expectations of our people in informal settlements, which is decent shelter with access to basic services,” stated the housing and rural development minister. City of Windhoek mayor MueseeKazapua said they realized that as a country, no entity can address the housing problem in Namibia alone. Kazapua said it is pleasing to see that the provision of housing to the residents in the informal settlements of the city is gaining the attention it deserves. He said informal settlements are expanding on daily basis with thousands of people unable to secure decent shelters. “With the rapid growth of informal settlements, the City is faced with a challenge that requires all stakeholders to get involved and address issues affecting our people in these parts of the city,” said Kazapua adding this pilot project could not have come at the right time albeit on a small- scale.

1.2 Shack dwellers praised for housing delivery New Era|06/12/2019

The Shack Dwellers Federation, which has so far constructed over 5 000 houses countrywide since its inception, has set a target to build 700 homes in the 2019/2020 financial year. This was revealed by the co-director of Namibia Housing Action Group, Heinrich Amushila, who briefed Oshana governor Elia Irimari as well as local and regional authority councillors in the region on the progress made by 4 the federation in addressing the housing issue. Since the introduction of the Shack Dwellers Federation in Oshana Region in 1993, the federation has so far constructed a total of 393 houses in Ondangwa, Oshakati and Ongwediva. “It is very hard for a low-income person to qualify for housing bank loans and [such a person] cannot access commercial housing,” explained Amushila. He added that the federation was established to assist those earning as low as N$4 000 a month to at least have a chance of owning a decent place to call home in an urban area. The houses are being constructed to the value of less than N$40 000 each. According to Amushila, 122 houses are under construction in Oshakati to the tune of N$3.6 million, while in Ondangwa 12 houses are being constructed. He added that 300 plots have been allocated to the federation at Onawa by the Oshakati town council, while the Ondangwa local authority has availed 59 plots at the town for the federation. On his part, Irimari praised the federation for coming up with the initiative to address the housing problem. “Most of our people are unable to get access to proper houses, thus it is important to address the housing need in our region,” said Irimari, who also thanked the three towns for meeting the federation halfway. “I feel good we are born in Oshakati but land is expensive thus this is a cheap way to get land as I only get my income from a restaurant in Oneshila,” said one of the beneficiaries Monika Manzila, who added that she has been renting for the past 16 years, but now has a place to call home.

1.3 Otjiwarongo to forcefully remove land grabbers The Namibian|11/01/2020

The Municipality of Otjiwarongo has warned that it will go to the extent of using force to get residents removed from a piece of unserviced land at the town, earmarked for a bigger project. The move comes after residents illegally occupied the piece of land, in the north-east of the Ombili informal settlement, where 40 shacks were found. On Thursday, Otjiwarongo municipality's acting chief executive officer, Marlay Mbakera, told Nampa that the municipality would remove the residents by Friday, adding that the land is earmarked for over 4 000 residential and business plots.She said a property developer, who has been appointed to service the area from January to June this year, has also started conducting mapping and design activities in the area where the alleged land grabbers have now set up their illegal structures. The developer, she added, is expected to channel clean drinking water and create roads, as well as install street lights on the same land before the municipality can allocate the plots. Mbakera further explained that her office has a database of housing applicants dating back to 2016. “In June this year we expect to start allocating plots to these applicants, therefore, we will have to remove all these illegal structures we have identified on this land,” she said. When this news agency visited the area on Thursday, nearly 50 people were found to have settled on the land. “I will not move anywhere or allow a person to dismantle my shack, until the municipality gives me a place I will call home,” said 40-year-old NdeuhalaHaufe. Fellow resident IyamboShapwa (62) accused the municipality of taking too long to complete the servicing or allocating of plots, despite the desperation of landless locals who urgently need houses, saying he has been applying for land since 2015, but to no avail. Aune Johannes (32) threatened not to vote in any regional or local authority elections if her shack is destroyed by the municipality officials on Friday. The group claims to have been settled on the municipal land since November 2019.

1.4 Outapi land turned into informal settlement New Era|13/01/2020

Expectant mothers and jobseekers who are mostly Angolan nationals have turned a portion of land next to the Outapi district hospital into an informal settlement. The area was initially used as squatters’ space by these non-Namibian expecting mothers who claim to have been refused accommodation into the government shelters for expecting mothers. But jobseekers who are also Angolan nationals have now joined the expecting mothers at the same area, which is not conducive

5 for the livelihood of people. It is from this spot that they go around to look for temporary jobs within Outapi and nearby villages and come back to sleep at this ‘new location’. Some expecting mothers are also doubling their roles as they too seek for jobs in effort to make some money to buy food. Clemensia Elalius, one of the expecting mothers from Okaluheke village in Angola said that, one of the reasons they are refused accommodation was because Angolan mothers bring along families.“I am not allowed inside the maternity shelter because I came here with my daughter who is taking care of me. Only one person is allowed inside but I cannot be alone, I can’t do much for myself, I need someone to help me,” said Elalius. They (Angolan nationals) also tend to stay in the shelter for a prolonged period of time, as they travel to the hospital moths before their pregnancies are due. “The shelter is not full. But it is only for women that are due in two weeks or with medical conditions,” said Benjamin Uahengo, Chief Administration Officer of Outapi district officer.Uahengo said at present, the Social Security Commission is busy constructing a new shelter and is expected to be completed next month. The shelter will accommodate 200 people.When journalists visited the site, the deplorable condition under which the mothers are living is evident.They sleep in the open where they cook, bath and they are often exposed to harsh weather conditions especially during the rainy and winter seasons. The ‘fortunate’ squatters have set up makeshift tents where they live with their families, including children. The environment is not conducive for human habitation as there are no toilets or clean water. Some expecting mothers claim that although they are not accompanied by family members and there are vacant beds at the government facility, they cannot afford to pay the N$20 required for accomodation in the shelter. The little money they have is spend on food. In fact, with the good rain received in the area, the squatters’ food woes are relieved by the seasonal food such as frogs and traditional/wild spinach, known as Omboga which they collect from the surrounding mahangu fields. There are also more job offers as local communal farmers are always in search for casual farm labourers for cultivation.

1.5 Henties residents question cheap land deals The Namibian|13/01/2020

Henties Bay residents have questioned what they consider cheap land deals within a conservation area south of the town, adjacent to the high-end Sun Bay suburb.A municipal public notice published in the newspapers last September gave residents a glimpse into the proposed land deals between the Henties Bay municipality and several developers. The deals came by private treaty.The notice called for the submission of possible objections against the alienation of 25 hectares in the town lands at a cost of N$25/m2 amounting to N$6 362 500, which is earmarked for mixed land use development. In response to the notice, the Henties Bay municipality received 51 written petitions, four email petitions and an online petition with 388 signatures from property owners in Namibia and South Africa. Petitioners argue that had the land been sold by public auction, a better price could have been fetched. The land was instead being sold to companies they had little knowledge about.There were also questions on whether the companies are registered, qualified and experienced. Residents also questioned the price – N$25/m2, which is cheaper than the 30 hectares of virgin land sold by the town five years ago to Zillion Investment Holdings for N$50/m2.“This current deal involves land inside a protected area, but is being sold for half the price,” one resident, who spoke on condition of anonymity, told The Namibian earlier this week. According to property agents who spoke to The Namibian, N$25 is “obviously too cheap” considering that the unserviced land adjacent to the proposed plots can be sold for N$200/m2. Serviced plots fetch nearly N$600/m2. Residents who requested the land's plans from the municipality were allegedly only provided with a rough sketch on a map with no GPS coordinates or marked sizes. Further concerns are that the intended developments will be situated within the Hammocks Dunes, a conservation area, which is ecologically sensitive and supposed to be protected from further encroachment through urban development. Petitioners made reference to the assurance from the Sun Bay developers five years ago that the area south of the suburb (in which the new developments are set) would remain a protected conservation area. According to petitioners, if the intended development takes place,

6 lawsuits could follow as properties were sold as an exclusive area bordering the conservation area. Henties Bay town acting chief executive officer Mahne Kruger said the community would be better informed had they attended monthly council and community meetings during which such developments are presented. He said there are six plots of 25 hectares each that have been allocated to six separate developers at a price of N$25/m2. He said the developers were responsible for advertising their intentions and to invite objections, which are then received and submitted to the urban development minister in the event such objections cannot be handled by the municipality. Kruger said the residents' petitions have been submitted to the minister pending feedback.He confirmed that the developments were taking place inside a conservation area. “Development still needs to go on,” he said. “The town is supposed to grow. Obviously, the developers have to go through the statutory processes, which will include environmental impact assessments and the acquiring of environmental clearance certificates,” he said. As for the 'cheap' price, Kruger said the council considered a variety of factors to make investment attractive. These factors include services and development costs and the current state of the economy. He said that every one of the plots is expected to be developed into “high-end townships”.

1.6 Opuwo to sell 60 serviced erven New Era|15/01/2020

The Opuwo town council in the Kunene Region has allocated 60 serviced residential erven for sale to the public under public-private partnership agreements. This was confirmed to by the town’s CEO, Petrus Shuuya, and here on Monday. Shuuya told this news agency that the sale of the erven will be based on a tender sale, a sort of silent auction. The erven will be put up for sale with a deadline for bids, where interested parties will have until 07 February 2020 to submit their offers without having seen anyone else’s bidding activity. The council has advised those interested in buying erven to get forms at the council chambers forN$20 and to pay a fee of N$5 000 deposit, which will be refunded should individuals fail to qualify for purchase. Shuuya said the 60 plots on sale are part of the 196 serviced erven in Otuzemba Extension 2, and that two of the 60 are business erven, with the remaining 58 being residential. The CEO noted that the already serviced plots on sale are part of other serviced erven to be advertised soon. He also urged low-income earners to join the Shack Dwellers Federation for lower cost housing as 300 houses will be constructed by the federation in Opuwo and that only 50 people had registered thus far.

1.7 Land grabbers defiant New Era|16/01/2020

Land grabbers refuse to vacate an area earmarked for 4 000 residential and business plots at Otjiwarongo. Suspected land grabbers at Ombili informal settlement have defied orders by the Otjiwarongo municipality to vacate an unserviced plot they have occupied since November last year. The municipality last week issued eviction orders to all 40 squatters to remove their structures before 8 January. Otjiwarongo acting CEO MarlayMbakera told Nampa that the land was earmarked for over 4 000 residential and business plots. She said a property developer had been appointed to service the area from January until June 2020. The developer is also tasked with installing water pipelines, creating streets and erecting streetlights. Once that is done, the municipality will allocate plots to applicants on its waiting list. Some of the land grabbers on Tuesday told Nampa that they would not move unless they were shown another place where they can settle. Tomas Nicanor (35) said he built his shack on the plot where he now lives with his five children. “I will not move out without being shown a new plot where I can take my children,” he said. Helena Sondaha (23) said she lost her job at a farm last year and has no relatives to stay with at Otjiwarongo, as she is from the Kavango East Region and cannot afford to pay rent. Otjiwarongo municipality spokesperson AdelheidShilongo on Tuesday said the eviction orders remained in force. Municipal officials and town councillors were to meet with the squatters last night to discuss the way forward, she said.

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1.8 Ray of hope for Mariental squatters New Era|20/01/2020

Residents living in informal areas in Mariental town will soon be moved on demarcated land with land titles as per the Flexible Land Tenure System, the Mariental Municipality has announced. According to the municipality’s senior manager of economic development and community affairs, Catherine Boois, the municipality teamed up with the Shack Dwellers Federation of Namibia and the National Housing Action group to conduct an enumeration process to update the current database of informal dwellers in the town. The program called Communal Land Information Project (CLIP) aims to collect data on all informal settlements in the town and assist the municipality’s efforts towards planning and upgrading of the informal settlements. The enumeration will be completed by February. “We had consultations with the ministry of land reform to pilot the Flexible Land Tenure System in possible areas we have already scoped out. The department is now working towards the strategy to be approved by council at the council meeting in February,” said Boois. She said a feedback meeting will be held on 28 January in order to review challenges faced during the enumeration process and for the municipality to offer its assistance where concerns are raised. Boois said that once people are moved to a demarcated area, service delivery will be easier. “The first thing we need to do is to rearrange people to the demarcated areas, and that is where the community needs to help the municipality by reporting anyone found grabbing a piece of land illegally. “We have arranged with the Namibian police to help us stop people from grabbing land because it is easier to stop them while in the process of setting up rather than demolishing the already set up structures,” she said. Boois added that the more people are grabbing land, the more difficult it becomes for the municipality to plan and therefore urged the community to refrain from occupying land illegally so that those that are currently settled in informal areas can be given the basic services such as water points. According to Boois, the municipality is aware of the shortage of land for community to build their houses but that some progress has been done. She said to date, the group that received the most land to build houses in the past three years is the Shack Dwellers Federation. “They have recently completed another 20 houses. In Empelheim Extension 3, we currently have 30 people with ministerial approval to buy land and build their houses. This land is heavily subsidized by council in order for the people to afford the land,” she said. She said council took a resolution at the end of 2019 to combat Hepatitis E and other contagious diseases and informed the buyers that if they want to build toilets on their land, they would be excused from paying building fees for the next two years. In addition, the municipality has sourced a private individual to draw up a building plan for the toilets. “When they want to build a toilet, we at municipality just give them the building plan, they don’t pay for the building fees we simply show them were the pipes are connected and we do the inspection as they are building so that we make sure it is a quality structure that is standing there,” said Boois.

1.9 Mariental informal settlements to be demarcated The Namibian|20/01/2020

Residents living in the informal areas of Mariental will soon be moved onto demarcated land with land titles as per the Flexible Land Tenure System, the town's municipality has announced. According to the municipality's senior manager of economic development and community affairs, Catherine Boois, in an interview with this reporter last week, the municipality teamed up with the Shack Dwellers Federation of Namibia and the National Housing Action Group to conduct an enumeration process to update the current database of informal area dwellers in the town. The programme, called the Communal Land Information Project (Clip), aims to collect data on all the informal settlements in the town and assist the municipality's efforts towards planning and upgrading them. The enumeration will be completed by February. “We had consultations with the Ministry of Land Reform to pilot the Flexible Land Tenure System in possible areas we have already scoped out. The department is now working towards the strategy to be approved at the council meeting in February,” said Boois. She said a feedback meeting will be held on 28 January to review the challenges faced

8 during the enumeration process and for the municipality to offer its assistance where concerns are raised. Boois said that once people are moved to a demarcated area, service delivery will be easier. “The first thing we need to do is to rearrange people to the demarcated areas, and that is where the community needs to help the municipality by reporting anyone found grabbing a piece of land. We have arranged with the Namibian Police to help us stop people from grabbing land, because it is easier to stop them while in the process of setting up rather than demolishing the already set up structures,” she said. Boois added that the more people grab land, the more difficult it becomes for the municipality to plan. She, therefore, urged the community to refrain from occupying land illegally so that those currently settled in informal areas can be provided with basic services such as water points. According to Boois, the municipality is aware of the shortage of land for the community to build their houses on but that some progress has been made. She said, to date, the group that has received the most land to build houses on in the past three years is the shack dwellers' federation. “They have recently completed another 20 houses at Empelheim Extension 3, we currently have 30 people with ministerial approval to buy land and build their houses. This land is heavily subsidised by the council for people to afford land,” she said. She said the council took a resolution at the end of last year to combat hepatitis E and other contagious diseases. She informed buyers that if they want to build toilets on their land, they would be excused from paying building fees for the next two years. In addition, the municipality has sourced a private individual to draw up a building plan for the toilets. “When they want to build a toilet, we at the municipality [will] just give them the building plan. They don't [need to] pay building fees – we simply show them where the pipes are connected and do the inspection as they are building, so that we make sure it is a quality structure,” said Boois.

1.10 Windhoek rent prices remain high The Namibian|21/01/2020

Rent prices in Windhoek remain high compared to the prevailing situation in the rest of the country. According to the FNB Namibia Rental Index report, the average rent for a two-bedroomed house in Windhoek was recorded at N$6 674,03, which was, however, a 5% contraction compared to the same period in 2018. Rehoboth recorded the lowest rental prices, at N$3 000 per month for a 2- bedroomed unit, which is seen as indicative of the smaller population and weaker economic activity at the town, about 100km south of the capital, and consequently thinner volumes in rental transactions compared to Windhoek. Meanwhile, the rent charges at Walvis Bay recorded the highest growth of 66,7% year-on-year (y-o-y). According to the report, other towns where rent growth was in positive territory include Ongwediva at 9,1% y-o-y, Okahandja at 3% y-o-y and Ondangwa at 1,5% y-o-y.FNB group economist RuusaNandago said the report is based on average advertised prices for the residential property market across the country. She said the FNB Rent Price Index recorded a contraction of 1,9% at the end of September 2019, compared to a contraction of 8,6% over the same period in 2018. “The smaller contraction was once again supported by price pressures in the 3-bedroom and above segment whose growth stood at 9% y-o-y compared to a contraction of 9,4% at the end of September 2018. In addition, pressures continue to build in the 1, 2 and 3-bedroom segments which have resulted in smaller year-on-year contractions of 4%, 3,2% and 3,4%, respectively,” she said.The national rent charges during the review period stood at N$7 163,94 per month, as the market remains overall negative owing to the persistent weak domestic economy. Nandago stated that the erosion in rental prices, which started early 2018, is due to the recessionary environment that seems to be gradually reversing. Meanwhile, the average monthly rent for a 1- bedroom unit is N$3 436, while a 2-bedroom unit rents for N$6 890. However, a 3-bedroom unit now costs an average of N$9 705 while those units with more than 3-bedrooms can be rented out for up to N$21 029 a month. Overall, the average rent price per room at the end of September was recorded at N$3 515.79, a 2,7% rise y-o-y compared to a contraction of 9,6% recorded in July 2018. “When looking at shares of total rental activity, 39,4% of all activity took place in the 1-bedroom segment, followed by the 2-bedroom segment which accounts for 36,7% of all transactions and the

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3-bedroom segment whose share was 20,6%. The 3-bedroom and above segment accounted for 3,3% of all rental activity.”

DEPOSITS

According to the FNB group economist, deposits charged continue to drop with the trend at the end of September 2019, recording a contraction of 30,8% y-o-y compared to 13,8% y-o-y in September 2018. This is the lowest reading recorded since 2017 with contractions in deposit growth rates observed across all rental index segments. Furthermore, the deposit-to-rent ratio has continued to plummit and now stands at 6,8%, the lowest the ratio has been since April 2010.Nandago said: “We maintain our view that Namibia has moved to a renter's market, allowing potential tenants to negotiate lower rental deposits or no deposit charges at all.”

HOUSING PRICES

Nandago added that the housing market remains under pressure with very low levels of buying and selling activities resulting in houses staying on the property market an average of 31 weeks before they are eventually sold. “We thus maintain our earlier view that rent affordability has not necessarily improved, but rather that rental property prices will be buoyed by an increasing number of participants opting to move into the rental market in the face of affordability issues in the housing market. “This will likely continue to push up prices and lead to smaller year-on-year contractions in growth. We expect rental price growth to remain in contraction for the remainder of the year and to move into positive territory early next year, likely settling in the range of 1%-2%.”

1.11 Omatando land owners to be compensated Namibian Sun|30/01/2020

The Ongwediva town council is ready to start the process of compensating landowners at Omatando, before it starts developing the massive township. According to council spokesperson Jackson Muma, valuators from the land reform ministry have so far identified 34 traditional landowners who will be compensated. Muma could not say how much compensation they will receive, but confirmed that the council is planning eight extensions at Omatando with a total of 2 287 plots. The council and Omatando landowners have for years been at loggerheads; with landowners adamant that they will not permit any formalisation before fair compensation is paid. In April 2019, ministry valuators were sent in to determine the value of traditional homesteads, mahangu fields and other properties at the township. “A total number of 34 traditional homesteads and fields in the affected area were measured, while the valuation of 17 homesteads could not be finalised due to time constraints and the unavailability of owners. In order to finalise the valuation process, the Ongwediva town council wishes to inform the owners of the remaining unmeasured fields and homesteads at Omatando to get ready for the last phase of valuations that will commence from 3 February,” said Muma.Owners of the valued homesteads are invited to visit the town council's offices to find out what compensation they would receive and to enter into negotiations, he said. Over the years, the town council has accused the residents of Omatando 1, 2 and 3 of holding back development in their areas. Residents, on the other hand, have questioned how their villages became part of the Ongwediva townlands in 2003 without their consent.

1.12 Walvis Bay to accelerate service delivery New Era|30/01/2020

The Walvis Bay Municipality says it will come up with a revised budget that will entirely focus on affordability in terms of the provision of housing and service delivery in the new financial year. However, sufficient provision will be made for the maintenance of existing infrastructure. Walvis Bay

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Mayor Immanuel Wilfred made the remarks during the first council meeting held on Tuesday. Wilfred told councillors that with the current economic situation it is indeed essential that council sets priorities and allocates the right attention to the right projects. “We need to act as quickly as possible and be on the same path by understanding how to make change happen, assign accountability, make those key decisions, delegate where necessary and make sure that teams work well together,” he explained. He added that council would continue to remain open to any stakeholder and investors that are willing to participate in the development of the town. “Our only criterion is for our partners to share in our vision and to keep in mind the bigger picture, namely the welfare of everyone who lives here. In other words, nice-to-have projects will not be considered at all,” he said. “The Namibian nation needs to knuckle down and prove to the world that we can solve our own problems, while at the local level, we will do our part to ensure that everything possible is done to enhance the prospects of growth and service delivery of our residents.”

1.13 Katima Mulilo demolishes illegal structures The Namibian|31/01/2020

The Katima Mulilo Town Council is demolishing incomplete structures at Lwanyanda settlement to discourage land grabbers from building there. The Lwanyanda compound is earmarked for a multimillion-dollar green val-ley project which will include 480 residential plots, a mall and a school. The first phase of the project is already underway, with the construction of sewer lines at the site. The town's mayor, Charles Matengu, during a press conference yesterday said they are not demolishing houses where people live, but targeting in-complete structures. Matengu urged those setting up their structures to start moving to the plots allocated to them at the newly established Nova compound, as they are illegally occupying coun-cilland.” There are close to 3 000 plots at Nova compound where we are relocating residents. Currently we have provided them with water tanks while we wait for NamWater to connect the water pipe to the com-pound for them to have a permanent water supply. “We, at council, are not inhuman. We care for our people, which is why we are doing all of this,” he explained. Matengu added that despite all their efforts, some Lwanyanda residents still refuse to be relocated. “We have secured about 100 tents which they can use temporarily while they build their houses at the new plots which they will be allocated, so there is no reason for them not to move,” he stressed. The chief executive officer of the town council, Raphael Liswaniso, said they are waiting for a court order before evicting the people. “Summonses were issued to those living at Lwanyanda settlement to op-pose and the deadline was 14 January. However, no one has opposed. We are now waiting for the court ruling to evict those refusing to move. We therefore request these people to use this time to move voluntarily. They should come to [the] council and register to be allocated a plot. We want to relocate them in peace, not forcefully,” he said. One of the residents, Ivan Siam-bango, noted that they do not have a problem moving, but are worried where their children will attend school, as the new compound currently has no school. “The distance our kids have to walk to the nearest school is far if we have to relocate. We also do not have money to build a new house and were informed there is no water there,” he said. Responding to their concerns, Liswaniso said people should not be worried about services such as schools and clinics as there are plots allocated for such facilities to be built at the new compound.

1.14 Block E residents grab land New Era|31/01/2020

About 100 residents of Block E in Rehoboth started grabbing land on Thursday morning citing slow or non-delivery of urban land to landless residents of the town. The residents started grabbing land in groups in front of the open space opposite the Rehoboth Urban East Constituency office with some threatening to dumb human feces in the offices of the Councilor. A 52-year-old Julius Gawanab who indicated that he still live at his grandfathers house with his sisters and their children said he was tired of waiting on promises made by the Rehoboth Urban East Constituency Councillor, Edward

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Wambo during the last and previous election campaigns of providing land for the landless. For the past few years during elections the people will go house-by-house and will promise us to make our life better and that they will provide land for us to build our own places. We have waited over 15 years and got tired and decided to take things in our own hands, Gawanab said. A 42-year-old man who opted against his name being mentioned said the only time they see the councilor is during election campaigns where he will allegedly promise services to people, only to vanish for years and said if he does not meet with them soon they will dump human feces in his office. I am married with five kids and unemployed and tired of his empty promises and lies and demand immediate audience with him. Failure to adhere to our request will result in us dumping human waste in his office, and we are also not scared of the police, he said. Another 68-year-old pensioner who was assisting her granddaughter said 18 people are living in her backyard in zinc houses due to lack of land. How long will these people stay here as they are getting old, with some of them even married. We need the government to give land to these people through the town council. Enough is enough, she said. The Rehoboth Town Council Housing and Property head, Ulrich Khachab arrived with about 20 Namibian Police Forces officers to avert the situation. He said the action by the people is illegal as the people should contact his office for advice. The action you took today is illegal and has repercussions as the area you are busy grabbing land on is not a residential area. I will thus advice you to elect four- member committee and see me at my office to pave a way forward, he said. The residents will hold a meeting at 18h00 on Thursday at the spot where they were grabbing land.

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2 Urban Infrastructure and Services

2.1 Walvis Bay, Kranzberg railway progresses Confidente|04/12/2019

The second consignment of rails that are meant for the upgrading of the Walvis Bay to Kranzberg railway line section stretching about 210km were delivered at the Port of Walvis Bay last week signalling significant progress of the project. The rails delivered were about 3860 steel rails weighing around 7500 metric tonnes and were discharged from the general cargo vessel Vestis Isle.In late July this year, the first batch of 6679 tonnes of steel rails arrived at the Port. This was part of a consignment of 20 000 tonnes intended for upgrading of the railway infrastructure.Robert Kalomho, Director: Railway Infrastructure Management from the Ministry of Works and Transport commented: “The delivery of the 20,000 tons is envisaged to be done in three batches with delivery to laydown areas [Walvis Bay, Arandis and Usakos] to be completed in 60 weeks. The last delivery of 5821 tonnes is expected to be delivered in March 2020.” Commercial Executive at Namport, Immanuel Tino! Hanabeb congratulated the team at the multipurpose terminal for pushing the boundaries in delivering exceptional customer service. “The team managed to discharge the rails in about 7 days, compared to previous discharges. Namport is dedicated to providing excellent service delivery and constantly challenging the status quo,” he said. The realisation of this infrastructure upgrade will see an easing of heavy cargo on the road system and furthermore lower landside transport costs into the region. The railway upgrade is part of the N$288 million Transport Infrastructure Project, which is financed by the government and African Development Bank. The transport project is intended to promote linkages to the Walvis Bay sea port in particular to support the Southern African state’s Vision 2030 objectives which include the establishment of a regional logistics hub. It includes not only the upgrade of rail but also road networks.

2.2 Desalination plant output hits record high The Namibian|05/12/2019

Since it started operating in 2010, the Erongo desalination plant has produced a milestone total of 50 million cubic metres of potable water. Originally built by Orano (then Areva Resources Namibia) to supply water to its Trekkopje Mine near Arandis, the desalination plant is now an important contributor to the overall supply of the potable water delivery system managed by Namwater.It provides about 75% of the overall drinking water to Swakopmund, as well as the nearby uranium mines and other industries. Located 35 kilometres north of Swakopmund, it is the largest reverse osmosis seawater desalination plant in southern Africa. Developed and owned by Orano Mining Namibia, the plant is operated by Nafasi Water (formerly Aveng Water). According to Orano Mining Namibia managing director Hilifa Mbako, the ongoing production of potable water is determined by demand, but the current capacity of the plant is 20 million cubic metres per year. It can be upgraded to supply 26 million cubic metres per year within the existing buildings. There is also the possibility of further extension to supply 45 million cubic metres of water, should the future demand it. The seawater desalination process consists of screen filtration, ultrafiltration, reverse osmosis, limestone contact and chlorination, and finally the clean water is supplied to Namwater through a pipeline from the plant to add to their supply for the region. “The Erongo desalination plant is already fulfilling a critical role in water provision for the Erongo region, and with the uranium industry showing signs of eventual recovery, it needs a sustainable and reliable water resource,” said Mbako, adding that the availability of water, through a desalination plant or plants, has the ability to unlock “enormous potential” from industry to agriculture. The Trekkopje mine near Arandis is still in care and maintenance as a result of the continued depression in the uranium price, and the portion of water it requires from the plant is quite small. Nafasi Water develops, builds and operates world-class industrial desalination and water reclamation projects. “We are committed to Namibia, and intend to continue investing in long-term water security developments across southern Africa,” said Nafasi 13

Water CEO Sizie Nkambule. “Our goal is to help preserve the precious volumes and water of sub- Saharan Africa, while ensuring access to alternative sources of water for potable and industrial use.” Earlier this year, with the commissioning of a small desalination plant (30 000 litres a day) at the Sam Nujoma campus at Henties Bay, Unam's acting pro-vice chancellor for research, innovation and development, Frank Kavishe, said Namibia needs at least three desalination plants to address the country's water shortage.Being one of the driest countries in southern Africa, the country needs a different approach to finding water resources, and with the advantage of having a 1 500km of coastline, renewable energy sources such as ocean water, wind and sun should be taken advantage of. “We can have solar-run desalination plants in the north at the mouth of [the] Kunene to supply the northern regions, and we can have another plant at Luderitz for the south. And when it comes to renewable energy, we have solar, wind and wave energy. We can combine all this, and achieve what we want,” noted Kavishe. Founding president Sam Nujoma said at the launch of the campus plant that even if the Orano plant was running at full capacity, it would be seen as an additional water source, and would not be enough to supply the coast and central Namibia. He added that preliminary feasibility studies suggest a 30 million cubic metre plant is required to supply Erongo and central Namibia (including Windhoek). This would also require booster pumps to lift the desalinated water 1 700 metres above sea level to the interior. “The time has come for us as a nation to put this idea to practice, and make this a priority and national project,” stated Nujoma.

2.3 Water saving: Windhoek nearly exceeds target New Era|09/01/2020

Despite Windhoek residents achieving a water-saving target of 14 percent last week, the city has implored consumers to show unprecedented levels of cooperation in the coming months. The latest achievement was mainly attributed to the summer holidays as many residents had travelled outside the city. The city expects consumers to at least save 15 percent of their water consumption weekly as Windhoek still faces a critical water shortage. According to the weekly water watch report, Windhoek is in a water scarce region, with uncertainty over the weather pattern. Water saving tips include not leaving the tap running while brushing teeth, flushing the toilet only when really needed to, and taking short stop-and-start showers. “Good water management provides for the ability to budget for water. Remember, the more you save, the less you pay,” the city stated in a brief statement. In addition, dam levels remain a grave concern if the latest NamWater weekly dam bulletin is anything to go by. All the three dams that supply Windhoek and neighbouring towns have a combined water level of 18.4 percent. Swakkoppoort dam is at 5.3 percent of capacity, Von Bach 39.8 percent, while Omatako is at 14.0 percent. Figures for the same time last year indicate that the three dams were at 35.0 percent of capacity.

2.4 Katima to repair flooded roads, streets New Era|13/01/2020

The Katima Mulilo Town Council will resurface roads which have been damaged by water due to rain that has been pouring in the past weeks. The targeted flooded streets to be resurfaced are in the suburbs of Choto, Cow Boy and Mahohoma. During a media briefing on Thursday last week, town council chairperson Lister Shamalaza stated even though the rain season is not yet over, council resolved to resurface the most affected streets as it is a matter of urgency. “In the short term plan, we are going to pump out water from the flooded streets, and put some gravel on such surfaces, but for the long term plan, we will see how we can upgrade our roads so that the water cannot affect our people,” he said. According to council spokesperson Muyoba Muyoba, the town wants to create accessibility, as some residents find it difficult to reach their houses due to flooded streets. He however cautioned that some residents who are affected were already given plots to higher ground, but they do not want to move. “We are going to identify those who were supposed to move but did not move, if we will have to do forceful eviction, then we will do it. Some of them have already built

14 where they are supposed to relocate, but they are still hanging on to the old plots, so we are going to attend to it,” Muyoba said. The chairman of Choto suburb Jimmy Sikwela, thanked council for trying to fix the flooded streets, he however questioned whether this will solve the problem at hand. “I would like to thank the town council for wanting to resurface the streets, However, we are always facing flooding every rainy season, I am therefore not sure if this will be a solution. Because after resurfacing the streets, water might be flowing directly into people’s houses. What we need here is a permanent solution,” said Sikwela.

2.5 Hardap irrigation cuts spark panic New Era|15/01/2020

Residents of Mariental dependant on the Hardap Dam have been thrown in a state of panic after the governor announced plans to close water for irrigation. Hardap governor Esme Isaack recently announced that NamWater will stop providing water to irrigation schemes due to the low level of the Hardap Dam. About 1 000 households benefit directly or indirectly from the Hardap Green Scheme project and will be negatively affected if water supplies are cut off. Farmers as well as workers at the Hardap scheme are concerned about the decrease in the dam level. “This has a ripple effect as the whole scheme supports the town, Kaap Agri, Agra, the cooperatives and the banks. Everyone is worried,” said Nerine Blankestein, a farmer in the area. Farm worker Mpunza Joseph expressed fear for the future if water supplies are discontinued. “How will the farmers pay us? We are not even sure if they will pay us this month,” said Joseph. The chairperson of the Hardap Farmers Association, Dawie de Klerk, however, said there was hope despite the low dam level. “The fact that the dam only has 6% water, means there is capacity for more water, and if there is an inflow, we will be able to handle it,” added De Klerk. He said the current 6,6% water level in the dam is sufficient to provide water for consumption and irrigation until March 2021, in the case that there is no inflow in the dam. “There are a lot of rumours and opinions about the dam but the fact is that the cut-off point of the raw water delivery to the Hardap scheme is 4,5% of capacity. If the dam level reaches 4,5%, we will still have portable water until March 2021, in case there is no inflow. The reports that the dam's sluices or water delivery sluices will be closed are not true,” said De Klerk. According to De Klerk, farmers in the area have committed to stop production on 40% of their irrigated land to rescue the situation until the end of January. The rain season usually runs from the end of January until April. “We are looking forward to the rainy season and also to 2021, so chances that the town will be without water is zero. But if there is no inflow into the dam, it will be detrimental. The whole community will be affected; the whole socio-economic system of the Hardap region will be affected,” said De Klerk. Governor Isaack yesterday told The Namibian that the regional office conducted several meetings with stakeholders last year when it was decided that when the dam level reaches 6%, water supply to irrigation will be stopped. The governor said initially, they planned to stop supply by the end of December, but due to savings measures implemented by the producers, the date might be extended to the end of this month. “The decision taken during our meetings is still binding. Mr De Klerk must not mislead the inhabitants. If there is any inflow into the dam before end of January then there will be an extension for the cut-off to irrigation. But if there is no inflow into the dam, then the cut-off of water supply will be implemented,” she said. She added that once supply to the irrigation scheme is stopped, there will be sufficient water until the end of March 2021 for Mariental. “If the level of the dam goes up to 6%, then NamWater will cut off water supply for irrigation end of January. I was informed by NamWater that there is no inflow. Although there was rain in the catchment areas, the water did not reach the dam,” she said. Isaack also said once irrigation water is not available anymore, more stress will be put on the potable water system. “For this reason, NamWater is installing a booster station on the potable water system to be able to supply more potable water than normal. This will, however, not be complete by end of January 2020, resulting in difficulty to supply sufficient potable water as from February until the booster station is finished,” she said.

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2.6 NaTIS to open in Omuthiya New Era|15/01/2020

The Namibia Traffic Information System (NaTIS) will soon be operational in Omuthiya with registration, says acting town council CEO Simon Nghuulondo. He said the town council would provide operational space for the officials, which will open for business during the course of the year. Other than that, Nghuulondo also highlighted that council will soon commission the recently completed fire station adjacent to the council offices, which has dragged on for about five years. “The building has been officially handed over to us by the contractor and we are now ready to start operating. We are only waiting for Telecom to come train our staff on how to operate the switchboard system and also to connect the lines directly to the council office for ease of communication,” he said. The fire station is equipped with a kitchen, furnished sleeping rooms, gym and a laundry room, among others. Five staff members will be attached to the fire department, with three of them being temporary employees. Nghuulondo also announced that retailer Spar will open its doors at the town during the course of the year. “So, in a nutshell, those are some of the developmental activities that our residents and nation at large can expect in our quest to bring services closer to the people. Spar is under construction and situated near Shell service station,” he remarked.

2.7 Omungwelume hostel nearly completed Namibian Sun|16/01/2020

The construction of a school community hostel at Omungwelume Senior Secondary School in the Ohangwena Region is at an advanced stage.School principal George Nanghanda told Namibian Sun he is confident that the hostel will be completed by the end of next month. According to the report he received from the contractor, and by his own observations, the construction is 70% complete.The government allocated N$6.4 million for the construction of the hostel, thanks to persistent pressure by the regional governor UskoNghaamwa. “Construction work is progressing well despite the rainfall. The contractor made estimation that 70% of the work has been completed and we are so delighted,” Nanghanda said. “Some of the learners are still accommodated at a run-down property bought by the Ohangwena regional council, while others live in the Omungwelume settlement and surrounding areas while the work is finishing. We are hopeful that by the end of next month it will be completed.” Nghaamwa was irked by learners living in shacks without adult supervision and started raising funds for the community hostel.The N$7 million project was then supported by the government as a joint venture with the community of Omungwelume. The project consists of hostel blocks that will accommodate 123 girls and 123 boys, a kitchen, ablution facilities, hostel caretakers' accommodation, a boundary wall, a sewer system, fresh water supply and electrification.Regional works and maintenance is the principal agent of the project and they are maintaining and supervising the work together with the regional directorate of education. Contractors are urged to work faster, but no substandard work will be allowed. Last June the school, in collaboration with Nghaamwa's office, hosted a fundraising dinner to raise money for the construction of the hostel.The event raised N$509 100 and 263 bags of cement. These donations complemented the 58 000 bricks delivered to the school by Nghaamwa's office. As of last year, the school had 581 learners in grades 10, 11 and 12. Only 118 were accommodated at a run-down property bought by the Ohangwena regional council. Concerned parents say Ohangwena is vast and the non-boarding school is taking in learners from all corners of the region – a situation that forces learners to take any available accommodation. Grade 10 learners from as far as Okongo, Epembe and Ekoka rent accommodation at Omungwelume to attend school there.

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2.8 300 pupils without a roof over their heads New Era|20/01/2020

About 300 learners at Oniipa Primary School will be taught in tents, as the school is without proper infrastructure to accommodate them. This follows a strong wind that ripped off the roofs of an entire classroom block last year November. “It is tough and rough,” said Principal Matias Mpinga, while narrating the challenge faced by the school. Since then, the learners were temporarily placed in tents to undertake their examination, with a view that the situation might be resolved, come this academic year. The storm also damaged ablution facilities, which consists of six pit latrines that serve the school’s over 1 000 pupils. Mpinga said the school is facing a daunting challenge in addition to overcrowded classrooms. He said, some classes have about 47 learners, which is way above the required learner-teacher ratio of 35:1. When this reporter visited the school last week, some learners were observed being addressed under trees, while others were busy clearing the grass to set up tents. Pupils affected are from Grade 4 to 6. “Classes are crowded, while some learners are being taught in tents. That poses a double challenge, which leads to poor performance. Officials came last year to do an assessment of the damage and it was resolved that a new block should be constructed, as repairing the old building is not viable; it would cost more,” stated Mpinga. “Our hope was to see progress when school re-opens, but we are disappointed to note that not even a foundation has been laid. We were informed that money was going to be sourced from an emergency fund to address the issue, but to date, nothing has happened.” Mpinga also lamented the deplorable state of the school’s ablution facilities, saying the pit toilets pose a great risk of disease outbreaks, considering the fact that the number of learners has also gone up. In terms of enrolment, he said, despite the classes being full to the rafters, more parents are still flocking to the school, seeking placement of their children. As a result, there are about 100 pupils on the waiting list. To that effect, Mpinga, said he will wait until today, which is a cut-off day to see whether or not they can still accommodate learners. “Every year, the number is increasing and the infrastructure can no longer sustain. We are just doing it because we can not turn away learners. This area is mostly surrounded by private schools; hence, it is very important to parents who cannot afford,” he said. Efforts to get comment from the educational director Aletta Eises proved futile despite several attempts.

2.9 Every drop still counts Namibian Sun|20/01/2020

Windhoekers have failed to achieve the overall water savings target implemented in May last year and the municipality remains gravely concerned about the city's water supply situation for 2020. Based on weekly water usage measurements taken since May 2019, when the City of Windhoek implemented the severe water scarcity regulations and mandatory 15% water savings target, actual water usage exceeded the weekly target of 465 000 cubic metres most weeks. Overconsumption of water was at its highest in October and November when the target was surpassed by 12% in the week starting 14 October, and by 10% over two weeks in November. The weekly targets were reached only in the colder month of July, three weeks in August, one week in September and one in October, and then again most of December and all of January, when many had fled the capital during their holidays. At the end of December, 23% water savings were achieved and 14% in the first week of January. Although water savings were achieved in the week ending 13 January, the savings had dropped to 3% of the overall target. Overall, since May 6 last year, a total of 17.5 million cubic metres was consumed in Windhoek, instead of the 17.2 million cubic metres the city planned for if the 15% goal had been reached. In total Windhoek residents and businesses consumed 260 263 cubic metres over target between May 2019 and January 2020. “Since May 2019 until now, the overall savings was 13.5%, which is commendable. Unfortunately this is still 1.5% over the target,” Windhoek municipality spokesperson Harold Akwenye said last week. “The City of Windhoek is concerned as the target has not been achieved. There are as yet no definitive indications that we will have sufficient surface water for 2020,” he warned. Akwenye said the municipality remains deeply

17 worried about the lack of surface water inflow to the dams, despite some rains, and the impact of continued extraction of water from the aquifer to offset over-consumption. In May last year, the city announced that the majority of water supply would be sourced from the aquifer, which would supply 39% of the city's water needs, compared to 35% to be supplied from NamWater, and 26% from the reclamation plant. The 15% savings target formed a crucial part of the water management strategy, as any water consumed more than the target consumption of 465 000 cubic metres per week has to be offset by the Windhoek boreholes. All savings would ease pressure on the aquifer city authorities stressed.In September last year, the city announced that the Windhoek aquifer water levels had been reduced to 25%. Akwenye explained that as per the water management plan the Windhoek aquifer has to be recharged by artificial means when the dams are filled, which has not taken place since 2011. Despite sporadic rains recorded last month in the central areas, inflow has been minimal. He said the little inflow to the Omatako Dam equates to “about four or five months of water supply to Windhoek, if all the water could be moved from the Omatako Dam to the Von Bach Dam.”In case the dams do receive good inflow, recharging the aquifer will be a priority. For the foreseeable future, the Category D water scarcity regulations remain in place, and Akwenye urged residents to practice wise-water usage to ensure that the abstraction from the aquifer remains minimal.He said Windhoekers are urged to adopt a “smart lifestyle” by implementing daily water management practices at home, including regular water meter readings and ensuring that consumption remains below the target of 90 litres of water per housemate per day. He again urged residents to immediately isolate water leaks and to arrange repairs quickly and to install water efficient flow reducers for taps and showers. Where possible, he said residents should consider installing water efficient toilets which can reduce consumption by 50%.

2.10 Sustainable use of Biomass strengthened Namibian Sun|22/01/2020

Germany has donated more than N$2 million in vehicles and equipment to the agriculture ministry and the University of Namibia (Unam) in an effort to strengthen the sustainable use of biomass. The donation included three vehicles for the monitoring and law-enforcement capacities of the forestry directorate in selected priority regions. In these regions, which are the most severely affected by bush encroachment, the forestry directorate offices have been equipped with computers and stationery. This equipment support enables the directorate to effectively implement an ongoing re- engineering process, which includes the digitalisation of its service delivery. According to a media statement, the directorate of forestry will increasingly rely on satellite images and aerial photos for farm inspections and will pilot a digital system for harvesting permit applications. This is meant to reduce the cost and turnaround time of the directorate's permitting process and increase its reliability and efficiency. The Unam department of animal science also received a laboratory incubator for analyses of animal fodder samples. The statement said due to the continuing drought, hundreds of farmers resorted to producing bush-based emergency fodder in 2019. “Dedicated laboratory capacities will help to improve the quality of the respective feed mixtures. In the same vein, the directorate of agricultural research and development is also set to receive laboratory equipment.” This directorate already offers testing of biomass samples to the public and will strengthen this service with the new analytical equipment. “Namibia and Germany enjoy a long- standing history of cooperation. This handover affirms the mutual dedication to address developmental challenges, stimulating sustainable and equitable growth, creating jobs and providing equal opportunities, said German ambassador Herbert Beck. He said Germany has supported the agriculture ministry through various programmes including in the areas of conservation agriculture, agricultural advisory and rangeland management. “Recently, the German government has especially strengthened its efforts to foster the drought resilience of the Namibian population. In this context, the utilisation of bush biomass, for example for bush-based animal fodder, plays a vital role.” Dr Thomas Kirsch, the country director of Deutsche GesellschaftfürInternationaleZusammenarbeit (GIZ) in Namibia, said more than 30 million hectares of rangeland is affected by bush encroachment in

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Namibia, which is more than two-thirds of the country. He however said that bush is no longer seen as a problem, but as an opportunity. “The sustainable use of bush biomass creates economic potential along various biomass value chains. Today, thanks to professional industry structures, and accelerated by the ongoing drought, the biomass utilisation sector employs some 10 000 workers.” The agriculture ministry's acting executive director and director of forestry Joseph Hailwa said the donated equipment will support two priority areas law enforcement and the monitoring of bush- harvesting operations. This is part of the forestry directorate's mandate to effectively regulate forest resource utilisation, he said. The vehicles will be used to carry out timely farm and site inspection where harvesting and processing of bush biomass is done to ensure correct procedures are followed.

2.11 Oshikoto grounds fleet as fuel account depleted New Era|22/01/2020

The Oshikoto regional council has grounded its fleet citing a depleted fuel account. Chief regional officer Frans Enkali announced in an internal circular to staff that the fuel vote 023 has been completely depleted for the financial year 2019/20. As a result, Enkali informed staff that no more new trip authorities would be issued for the reminder of the financial year except for seven vehicles, which includes the official car of the regional council chairperson and another assigned to Cuban consultants as well as three temporarily allocated to the Office of the Prime Minister towards the drought relief programme. A further two vehicles attached to settlements within Oshikoto have also been exempted. Other conditions to use vehicles will be in emergency cases or when approval is given for a specific task. The directive is further extended to all 11 constituencies offices. Enkali also advised staff to start the vehicles at least twice a week to maintain the battery life.

2.12 Uiba-Oas community in dire need of water New Era|22/01/2020

Residents of Uiba-Oas Small-Scale Miners’ Cooperative situated between Usakos and Arandis are appealing to government to bring basic services such as water and electricity to their area. About 300 people, whose main source of income is derived from selling semi-precious stones to tourists and interested jewellery makers, said they struggle to get by without running water and electricity. Speaking to New Era on behalf of the residents, Sylvia Pienaar said they are charged exorbitant amounts of money to get water from nearby farms and settlements with boreholes. Pienaar says they sometimes have to travel long distances to get water if no vehicle is available to fetch water and fill the storage tanks. “On top of that, we also have to pay for fuel. Sometimes we are left at the mercy of passing cars as we approach them in extreme cases to get water or a lift to the nearest settlement or Usakos to buy water,” she explained. According to the residents, a woman from Okahandja, who is farming in the area, is currently assisting them by bringing water for free. However, the truck she uses has broken down. Another resident HildegaardtDausas says government has in the past drilled boreholes in the area but could not find water. “I know our area is also dry but I think if they drill the boreholes deeper they would be able to find water as many of the surrounding farms survives from boreholes,” she says. On the issue of electricity, Dausas suggested solar power would be ideal for them.According to Dausas, only their craft centre is currently running on solar power. “We fear for our safety. Once it’s dark, wild animals and creatures especially snakes roam the area. We had at least four snake bites in the past but could not even search for the snake as it was too dark,” she said. She added that they are also reluctant to make use of conventional methods for light out of fear that it might cause veld fires. “That is why we are pleading with government to make water and electricity accessible for us,” Dausas appealed. Commenting on the issue, the Daures constituency councillor Kennedy Haoseb said he is aware of the plight of Uiba-Oas and that his office is working towards the provision of water and electricity for its residents. “The provision of water specifically is been catered for under the drought relief budget and is at an advance stage. A tender will soon be allocated in order to connect a pipeline from a privately drilled borehole to Uiba-

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Oas,”!Haoseb explained. As for the electricity! Haoseb said he is liaising with Erongo Red and that Uiba-Oas is a top priority in the rural electrification programme of the electricity distributor. “They must just be patient we are addressing their challenges,” !Haoseb said.

2.13 Same old, same old Namibian Sun|24/01/2020

Discomfort is a fact of life for learners at Nkurenkuru Combined School in Kavango West, where a lack of furniture means they either have to stand or sit on the ground during classes. At Nkurenkuru Combined School in Kavango West Region, learners are being taught under trees, seated on the floor or standing for hours due to a lack of furniture.During a visit to the school, Namibian Sun observed a newly completed four classroom block without a single piece of furniture. At around 09:00, learners appeared tired and uncomfortable and demanded that the education ministry look into the situation with urgency. Namibian Sun established that the few learners with chairs brought them from home. “When you come to school, you suffer by sitting on the floor, and walking back home, you think about the suffering. The next morning on your way to school, you are thinking about how you are going to suffer again,” a learner said. Some of the learners travel about 15 kilometres to school.One of the teachers said it is difficult to teach learners in such an environment.“The learners are forever tired and their concentration levels are very low. They don't want to take notes, not because they are rebelling but they are not in a comfortable situation. We are appealing that our government looks into our situation.” Another teacher, who instructs learners under a tree, said they really need the situation to be addressed as they are exposed to a number of distractions, including rain. “The reason why we are outside is because there is no classroom that is vacant and now imagine what will happen if the rain starts to pour. We will be forced to seek hiding wherever we can and the class will be interrupted. Now tell me, is it fair?” the teacher asked.According to PrincipalFransNgoma, enrolment of learners is still ongoing. The school has, thus far, enrolled a total of 1 310 learners. The school has 40 teachers, while the learner-teacher ratio stands at 50 to 60 learners per teacher. Ngoma, who described the situation as 'unfortunate', said these issues have plagued the school for many years and worsen each year. He attributed the challenges to the increase in population in Nkurenkuru, saying that each year, the number of learners’ enrolled increases because of the demand for school placement.“Nkurenkuru Combined School is at the centre of town and with the population increasing, it makes it worse for our school. People are coming to town either after having secured employment or seeking for jobs and in the process, they bring their children with. We also cannot deny a child access to education,” he said. Ngoma added that their concerns are known by the Kavango West Region education directorate. “All these years, we have been submitting our needs to the regional office and they have assisted where they can, I must say, but our challenges remain a stumbling block to providing quality education,” he said. Ngoma pointed out that the school needs four classrooms, an administration block, 701 chairs, 702 desks, teaching and learning materials as well as stationery. In an interview with Namibian Sun, Kavango West Region education director Teopolina Hamutumwa said she will not deny what is happening at the school.She however pointed out that these challenges are not “as critical” as those experienced at several schools in the region. Hamutumwa said that for the 2019/2020 financial year, the Kavango West East Region education received a budget of N$55 million, of which N$11 376 000 was directed towards the development budget. She said N$2.5 million will be used for renovations while N$8.9 million will be used for basic facilities. Hamutumwa said only schools in dire need were prioritised. “As for Nkurenkuru Combined School, we know of their situation but because of the limited funds, the focus was on schools which are in dire need. It is unfortunate that the situation is like that,” she said.

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2.14 Tsumeb faces acute water shortage New Era|27/01/2020

A broken water pump at one of Tsumeb’s boreholes has left many residents with an acute shortage of water since Thursday last week. As of yesterday, the council’s spokesperson Stella Imalwa-Nangolo in a telephonic interview said the issue has not been restored but engineers and technicians are working round the clock to fix the pump, suggesting it might only be fixed during the course of the week. In addition, she said, the situation is not so severe in some areas but the pressure is very low. “People have water in some areas, but very low, thus the notice was a precautionary measure to the residents so that they can be aware of what is happening and to use water sparingly,” said Imalwa- Nangolo. Meanwhile, the situation has forced Dundee Precious Metals Tsumeb to switch from domestic water to raw water usage in an effort to remain afloat. “All employees are requested not to drink tap water but collect drinking water from the acid plant and the power plant until further notice,” stated the communication manager, Alina Garises. Garises said they are in consistent contact with the municipality, and at this stage, the copper smelting mine does not anticipate adverse impact on its business operations.

2.15 School in dire need of furniture New Era|27/01/2020

Effective deliverance of quality education is being undermined at Nkurenkuru Combined School, as learners sit on the floor throughout lessons, because they do not have chairs, neither desks to write on. The school received a new block of four classrooms but it has not yet been furnished. Grade 10 learners who use these classrooms are now forced to write on their laps, on the floor or while standing – the pain and struggle they endure during lessons. “It’s impeding the teaching and learning process,” the school principal, Frans Ngoma, fumed. This unfavourable situation has forced some learners to carry their own chairs from home. The school is also hit by insufficient classrooms to accommodate the escalating population of learners this academic year, despite having received four new classrooms. When this reporter visited the school, its learner population was already at 1 310 and still counting, as admission is still ongoing until 4 February 2020. The situation has also forced some learners to be taught under a tree. “Social science learners for grade eleven are being taught outside. There is nowhere to put these learners,” said Ngoma. The high enrolment of learners has also placed work overload on teachers, as the school is understaffed. The principal is now appealing to the regional directorate of education to look into their challenges as a matter of urgency. “We are talking about quality education; how can we accomplish it [quality education] if we have such challenges at our school?” he rhetorically questioned. When contacted for comment, regional education director Teopolina Hamutumua said, “Last year, we have not received any budget provision to buy furniture but as a region, we have done our best to repair those that we could repair.” She said the furniture has been distributed to schools, including Nkurenkuru Combined School, but could unfortunately not cater for every learner.

2.16 Kunene solar plant completed The Namibian|30/01/2020

The environment ministry, with the help of the Environmental Investment Fund, has completed the construction of a 150-killowatt solar plant, in the Kunene region. The plant worth N$5,2 million is seen as the fund's contribution to Namibia's attainment of renewable energy and energy efficiency targets. It is also part of the Environmental Investment Fund's (EIF) climate change project. Speaking at the handover of the solar plant to the SorisSoris conservancy in the Kunene region yesterday, environment minister PohambaShifeta said the project has created 25 jobs and will benefit 9 200 people. “The project further trained people from the community and four women are being trained on solar plant operations, maintenance and administration. I cannot over-emphasise the recognition

21 of gender mainstreaming for all the projects,” he said. Shifeta further said the increased use of renewable energy such as solar off-grid technologies, will not only cushion Namibia from the adverse effects of climate change, but also act as a catalyst for enhancing rural development through the promotion of better conditions for women to access better education and health services, improved access to information, improved productivity and new employment opportunities. For the solar plant and other climate change-related projects, the EIF secured N$130 million from the Green Climate Fund (GCF) through the Enhanced Direct Access (EDA) modality for these climate change projects. The funding is under the GCF's 'Empower to Adapt: Creating Climate Resilient Livelihoods' through Community Based Natural Resource Management in Namibia (CBNRM EDA) Project Grant Facility. “I have been assured that certain mechanisms have been put in place that will ensure that a revolving fund is established, which will support community projects and livelihood options. To the SorisSoris conservancy Management Committee, please ensure sound financial accountability for the local revolving funds from this intervention. “I therefore urge the Environmental Investment Fund of Namibia to exert efforts in mobilising more financial resources for other regions so that they too can benefit from these wonderful interventions,” the minister said. Kunene region governor Marius Sheya said he has reliably been informed that the solar plant project at the SorrisSorris conservancy was successfully completed way before the expected time frame, saying it comes at an opportune time. “The solar plant being handed over to the SorrisSorris conservancy could not have come at a better time, especially since the Kunene region has been affected by long periods of drought that have made it difficult for the communities to adapt to the effects of climate change and to diversify their livelihoods,” Sheya said. He noted that the region fully embraces the project, since it will not only support the programmes to achieve the climate change and community support targets as a region, but will also inevitably serve as a conduit for achieving national climate resilience objectives.

2.17 Health woes in Kavango continue The Namibian|30/01/2020

The health ministry has decided to terminate the tenders awarded to contractors who have abandoned building projects in the two Kavango regions. While inhabitants of the two Kavango regions eagerly wait for the government to build more health facilities, health minister KalumbiShangula says the wait will continue because of the new procurement policy, under which it takes up to 18 months to appoint a contractor. Shangula visited the two Kavango regions last September to gain insight into the health problems faced by communities there.Kavango West and Kavango East both need more health facilities and construction projects have been abandoned while thousands of people need healthcare services. Shangula said since his visit the ministry had decided to cancel the contracts awarded for the abandoned projects and start from scratch to find new contractors. But he said terminating a contract is not a simple matter, as there are procedures that must be followed and the new procurement policy must also be taken into account. Shangula said the works ministry, which oversees government capital projects, was dealing with the termination of the contracts. “Once terminated, fresh bids will be advertised and a new contractor will be appointed. It is no longer in the hands of the health ministry but with the ministry of works,” Shangula explained. He said the procurement board takes up to 18 months to appoint a successful bidder. “It is a challenge and it is frustrating but there are reasons for that, such as to ensure that the work is of high quality and to deal with issues such as nepotism and corruption,” Shangula said. During his September visit Shangula observed some of the incomplete government projects that have been lying idle for years, as well as the dilapidated health facilities in the two Kavango regions.Among these were the Nkurenkuru Primary Healthcare Centre, which has been in limbo for more than four years, and the planned Nkurenkuru District Hospital, which is yet to get off the ground. Shangula also visited the Nankudu District Hospital, which had a broken X-ray machine and a mortuary that regularly experiences breakdowns. At the construction site of the long-awaited Nkurenkuru District Hospital, Shangula witnessed how a boundary fence which had cost the government close to N$6 million had been vandalised. Shangula expressed concern about the vandalism but did not comment

22 on the project's lack of progress. In May last year, the ministry told Namibian Sun that the feasibility study for the construction of the Nkurenkuru District Hospital had been finalised. “The ministry is compiling new standards and norms for hospitals and these are being used to re-modify the feasibility for the designated hospital to be responsive to the needs of a modern hospital. “These standards have to do with patient flow, the outpatient department, casualty, the wards and other diagnostic services; so that all district hospitals have a similar standard. Therefore, once this is finalised, the full design will be commissioned,” the ministry said.

2.18 City should reduce illegal power connections New Era|31/01/2020

Windhoek mayor Fransina Kahungu who recently moved her office to Babylon is of the view that municipality should provide electricity to residents in the informal settlements to do away with illegal power connections. “Surprisingly, at the end of Moses ǁGaroëb were there is no electricity, you find the light. I want to bring my officials one evening to tour informal settlements. This one challenged me to say, why we can’t just provide electricity to individual houses. I can see the capacity is there if it was not there, those houses will not have access to illegal power connections. There are a lot of illegal connections,” Kahungu argued. In an interview yesterday, she made specific reference to Nalitungwe, well known as OlukandalaMukwanangombe settlement in Moses ǁGaroëb.According to her, the whole settlement is almost 100 percent electrified through illegal power connections. Kahungu said these residents have money to afford electricity, hence the municipality should provide them with power legally. “We just have to give electricity legally. But we should not waste time. When I asked some residents, they told me for one to get that electricity, you have to pay from N$500 per month to the person who gave you power. I am asking myself, why don’t you give electricity legally, and then we get that money without that third person in the middle,” she contended. She reasoned that the fact that Windhoek rarely experiences power blackouts, it’s an indication that the electricity capacity is somehow sufficient. Over 1 000 households in Havana and Okahandja Park informal settlements now have electricity connections to their homes since last year. This is after the City of Windhoek and Ministry of Urban and Rural Development had an electricity switch on to 1 200 houses through a project that commenced in 2018. These homes were electrified in Tobias Hainyeko and Moses ǁGaroëb constituencies after the City council decided to answer to the calls of its residents by investing N$13 million, which they received from the ministry. The ministry committed another N$14 million to Phase 2 of this project, to electrify 1 000 houses for the financial year 2019/2020. The second phase has commenced in Otjomuise, One Nation and part of Havana settlements, with the completion envisaged for June 2020. Kahungu also plans to compile a mayoral report with pressing issues brought forward to her office in Babylon to table it during the council meeting soon.She said more than 100 residents have visited her office so far with the majority of them having raised their frustrations over the unavailability of land. “They came in various categories and most of them are talking about land. They need land. Some are talking about broken toilets and lack of electricity,” she said. According to her, there have been war veterans who came to see her, demanding a portion of land to be allocated to them.Another group of needy residents also approached her office seeking an update on their application for the land they applied for during 2016. “The municipality requested land through the Ministry of Urban and Rural Development on behalf of a group from Tukondjeninomukumo settlement in Tobias Hainyeko constituency for them to be given land less than 300 square metres. The approval was given in 2016 to demarcate land for them. These are people living with disabilities. Up to now, the municipality did nothing,” she said.The mayor expressed her gratitude on the manner the residents are approaching her office seeking municipal services such as electricity, potable water, sanitation, and land. Residents raised concern that the bills for December were exorbitant. Equally, residents in the informal settlement also want a ministry of home affairs office located close to them, to assist them acquire national documents. She said due to lack of national documents, some children are unable to attend school, while others who are really needy cannot get their monthly food rations through the government’s food bank initiative.

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2.19 Walvis Bay road signs vandalised The Namibian|31/01/2020

The Walvis Bay municipal area, in December alone, lost 630 traffic and street name signs, either through vandalism or possible theft. Caty Sheya of the Walvis Bay municipality's public relations department said in a notice yesterday 240 traffic signs and 91 street name plates had been vandalised, while 147 traffic signs and 152 street name plates went missing. The signs are valued at about N$205 000, which ratepayers would be expected to pay. In addition to these, there are also signs that have been affected by rust and need replacement. Sheya told The Namibian that signs are vandalised or go missing throughout the year, but last December, the incidents “skyrocketed”. It is suspected that the festive season and the influx of visitors may have been the reason for the spike in the damage. As a result, the municipality hopes to replace or repair between 80 to 100 signs per month. Most of the signs vandalised or missing were at Kuisebmond, Narraville or Long Beach. The traffic signs included stop signs, yield signs, and warning signs for speed humps ahead, or pedestrian crossings, T-junctions and cul-de-sacs. Whether the signs are just vandalised, or stolen for personal collections, or even sold as scrap metal, cannot be pinpointed. The missing or broken signs do, however, cause an inconvenience to road users, and also pose a danger as they compromise road safety. “Repairing and replacing them also places an extra burden on the municipality's resources, resulting in high coss. There is a blatant disregard for public assets. The vandalism of public facilities is a criminal offence and anyone guilty of such behaviour may face stiff penalties, imprisonment or both,” she said. People caught either vandalising, stealing or “collecting” street signs could incur a N$300 fine or six months' imprisonment, or both. The fine can be increased to N$2 000 if one is found guilty in a court of law.She said with the availability of built-in camera facilities on cellphones, residents are urged to take photos of the culprits and to report acts of vandalism immediately to the nearest police station. Photos can be emailed to [email protected] or sent via WhatsApp to 081 128 3238.

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3 Livelihood and Urban economy

3.1 MTC unveils first innovation centre Confidente|04/12/2019

Perpetually adhering and glued to its ethos and what it stands for, Namibia’s leading telco operator MTC have opened the first ICT Innovation Centre in Windhoek to test, build and showcase new business and consumer ICT applications. Based at Maerua Mall in Windhoek, MTC Innovation Centre will be a physical space for the digital and physical tools and bare fruits of innovation brought to you by MTC’s Enterprise division. The innovation will be focused on incubating Enterprise-based services on everything from comprehensive fibre internet and digital Cloud computing services to spearhead digital transformation in the smartphone and smart city (connected society) initiatives. “What we are launching here today is a Digital Cloud computing service with access over LTE and Fiber. In addition, the MTC Innovation Centre will be the platform to allow our partners and customers to test this service in a live environment,” said MTC’s Acting CEO Dr.Licky Erastus, adding that this is a right direction in exploring the huge potential of digitization for both private and business sectors.As the space for innovation, the centre will include the latest technologies and tools for visitors to experiment or iterate on their ideas or see how else they might apply the technologies in their businesses. MTC as a leading ICT provider are taking another important step to showcase the huge potential of ICT applications for both the private and business sectors. “Digitalization has sophisticated the market’s taste and preferences. Our customers now demand for smart and cost effective market solutions that attend to their ever evolving needs. Hence, this center is where innovative ICT solutions for our customers will be birthed. The center is planned to be home to new ideas, research and development,” Erastus. He added; “A successful Digital enabler requires a healthy and prosperous business environment. After all, MTC was established to innovate, provide new experiences and incubate digital services in order for our country to thrive. In his comment, Tim Ekandjo, MTC’s Chief Human Capital and Corporate Affairs Officer said that in the ICT industry, one must be flexible to accommodate change and remain relevant. “Technological revolution screams evolution to the industry players. We have to grease the wheel that invents and reinvent new ways of doing things. We have to adopt and stay on par with change, and as the world is diving in the era of Internet of Things (IoT), we have to embrace digitalization and identify how to siphon value out of and capitalize on the phenomenon to continue providing effective and innovative market solutions. The center is therefore strategic in arraying and positioning MTC’s fit for future. It rests well within our long term strategy.” The tour in the center gave the guests an all-round ICT galaxy and virtual reality experience. The center will be open to enterprises and later to the public to experience, experiment, and share, develop and turn ideas into reality.

3.2 SFL donates business equipment to girls New Era|04/12/2019

Star For Life (SFL), a non-profit organisation funded by GIZ, UNESCO and Volvo, handed over business equipment to girls that form part of the Daughters of Africa (DOA) project in Windhoek on recently. The event took place at Cosmos High School hall where girls from various schools, including Hage Geingob High School, Cosmos, Jan Jonker Senior Secondary, Immanuel Shifidi, Highline and A Shipena were among the beneficiaries of the Daughters of Africa project. The organisation, which has branches in Namibia, South Africa and Sweden established in 2007 as a school-based life skills HIV/AIDS prevention programme that provides young people with information and motivation to help them make informed decisions and help reduce risk of new HIV infections among the youth. With the help of GIZ, the German international cooperation organisation, the girls received business equipment through funds offered to SFL for start-ups. SFL also previously hosted an annual girl’s seminar in September under the theme ‘Dream it, be it, its Your Time to Shine’, whereby girls who are part of SFL pitched different business ideas. The Daughters of Africa project under Star for Life 25 offers resources to female learners, who have been negatively affected by poverty by focusing on three objectives: sexual reproductive health and rights, gender-based violence prevention and entrepreneurship. Acting SFL country manager ForeversunHaiduwa said the equipment was given as an investment in the girls' future to support the businesses that will be started. The DOA girls received equipment in line with their training and business ideas, with projects ranging from catering, designing, gardening, and bakeries. Marion Mushaandja, a Grade 11 pupil from Hage Geingob Secondary School, said she was eager to start using the new equipment as her group had nothing apart from their business ideas. “It’s going to be an exciting experience using the equipment to be able to open doors and make money out of the business we are going to start,” Mushaandja said. Haiduwa said the equipment will officially be handed to the learners in January to avoid problems and learners were requested to sign a pledge form, stating that the equipment would be in good hands. He urged the DOA girls to take care of the equipment, not to donate or sell it to their elders or anyone else. The money generated from the equipment will be accounted for and monitored by the development coach. “Any loss or damage done to the equipment will result in learners being liable and will be forced to re-buy the equipment,” Haiduwa added.

3.3 Drought has devastating multi-sectoral effects New Era|04/12/2019

The current drought in the south of Namibia does not only bring farmers to their knees, but in addition it also has a dreadful chain reaction from suppliers down to labourers and the general public at large, said HansieEsterhuyse, the chairperson of the Karasberg Farmers Association and renowned expert in the agricultural/ farming sector. He made these remarks during an exclusive interview with New Era when he was probed on the effects of the drought situation. “Being involved in the farming insurance business for many years, it is quite disheartening to observe that about 95 percent of farmers have withdrawn almost all their available financial resources as a means for surviving this national crisis,” Esterhuyse explained with concern. He added that 80 percent of farmers are furthermore running their farms on bank overdrafts out of desperation. The farmer further said suppliers are also negatively affected by the drought, as farmers can no more purchase goods and materials from them. He emphasised that 20 percent of all farms in the south are deserted, as farmers have been forced to sell all their livestock. “I had personally suffered tremendous losses, which include losing 108 Springboks, 21 Oryx and close to 300 Sheep,” he shared. Esterhuyse continued there are almost no grazing available on farms, forcing farmers to chop down bushes and mix it with mealies and other substances as a means to provide food for their animals. “Farmers are nowadays forced to retrench their workers, as they cannot afford to keep them employed anymore, which in turn has a very negative effect on the socio-economic circumstances in the country,” he noted. The farmer then added that this brought about an influx of farm workers to urban areas, where crime is prevailing due to poverty and high unemployment levels.Referring to assistance programmes in place, Esterhuyse mentioned that the Namibia Agricultural Union has a programme in place, whereby they have assisted farmers to the tune of N$10 million from donations they received from individuals and organisations. “Organisations from South Africa are also assisting these farmers through sending consignments of fodder to relieve their plight,” he added. As a matter of concern, Esterhuyze mentioned that the qualifying criteria to receive assistance through the Government’s drought relief programme has made many farmers deciding to rather not apply for the assistance, since it is not user friendly. “Another concern is that most of this aid goes towards food programmes for the poor, neglecting the farmers who must produce to survive and contribute towards the country’s economy,” he stated.According to Esterhuyze, it will take another 10 months for farmers to get their weak animals ready to produce if good rains eventually come.“Especially the ewes must first adapt to new circumstances and get power after the rains first before one can allow them to produce,” he explained. The farmer was furthermore of the opinion that it will take an average farmer up to three years to reach the status of productivity as was the case prior to the recurrent

26 droughts. In conclusion, he said farmers still remain positive, hoping for good rains but fear exists that this positive attitude might not last for long, as rains are generally unpredictable.

3.4 Meatco gets bulk of Norwegian guota Namibian Sun|05/12/2019

The Meat Board of Namibia has allocated next year's 1 600-tonne Norwegian beef export quota to Meatco and the Brukkaros abattoir. Meatco received a 1 400-tonne quota and Brukkaros 200 tonnes. The Norwegian beef quota is subject to strict implementation procedures and will be effective 1 January 2020. According to the Meat Board the allocation must still be ratified by the trade minister. Up to now, Meatco has filled 95% of this year's Norwegian quota and all indications are that it will utilise the full quota before the end of the year, the Meat Board said. The Norwegian quota is awarded annually to eligible organisations. In other news, the Meat Board has started appointing contractors to repair, replace and maintain equipment at the KatimaMulilo export abattoir.It says the government has granted a certain amount for this purpose and this project is jointly managed by consulting engineers of the agriculture ministry, the works ministry, the Meat Board and Meatco. The abattoir's refrigeration system will be given priority attention. “The appointment of the Meat Board was driven by factors that include mismanagement by the previous contractor, cost cutting and the need of beef producers from the Zambezi who have not had a formal market for marketing their products for the last five years,” the Meat Board says.The aim is to start experimental slaughtering at the abattoir in February 2020. Because of the regular occurrence of foot-and-mouth disease in this region, the abattoir equipment must comply with the recommendations of the International Animal Health Organisation.

3.5 Windhoek country club hits N$158m revenue The Namibian|06/12/2019

The State-owned Windhoek Country Club's revenue grew to N$158 million for the 2019 financial year, and 52% (N$82 million) of it came from the casino and gaming operations, recently released financial statements show. The financials are part of the company's annual report released this week, showing that the company made an N$7, 4 million profit for the financial year ending April 2019.The N$7, 4 million profit is a 16% increase from the N$6, 2 million profit realised during the previous financial year. Tony Boucher, the general manager of the company, partly owned by the government said against a reduction in the purchasing power of consumers and clients having become price and value conscious, the company will continue efforts to diversify products and customer bases from traditional source markets into local, regional and emerging markets. “We intend to continue with a strategy of pursuing new business opportunities, enlisting new source markets, increasing brand outreach and driving repeat and incremental business. These measures, we believe, should insulate us from revenue erosion,” Boucher said. Other than the casino and gaming, the company also runs hotel operations that raked in N$75 million revenue, a marginal uptick from N$74 million earned in 2018.Operational costs over revenue stood at 48% and 44% for the casino and hotel segments, respectively. Operational costs for the hotel segment decreased against the rise in income, by a minimal 0,5% – when revenue increased by 1,4%.Accommodation was the biggest driver of the hotel revenue with 57% (N$43 million) followed by food at N$19 million, beverages at N$6,5 million and banqueting at N$5 million. Assets at the end of the financial year stood at N$393 million, largely vested in property, plant and equipment at N$317 million. The asset base is matched against a N$62 million accumulated loss, a non-distributable reserve of N$164 million as well as N$269 million as share premium. Cash at the end of the financial year stood at N$55 million, an increase of almost N$21 million from 2018.

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EXPANSIONS

Sven Thieme, the chairman to the Country Club's board of directors said plans are underway to extend the properties, with construction set to begin during winter in 2020. A dividend of N$6 million was declared and paid to the shareholders.

3.6 Thousands of tourists expected at Walvis Bay The Namibian|06/01/2020

While the rest of the country is preparing for the back-to-school rush, the coastal town of Walvis Bay is preparing for another influx of visitors. Seven cruise liners, with an estimated 10 000 passengers, are scheduled to call at the Walvis Bay harbour's new dedicated cruise passenger line terminal this month. The new passenger terminal was commissioned alongside the new container terminal last year. “The new passenger terminal provides a great impetus for the further development of the local tourism industry. The number of passenger liners calling at the port of Walvis Bay is forecast to increase,” Namport's acting chief executive officer, Kavin Harry, explained. He added that improved productivity at the port has not gone unnoticed by shipping lines and there are very good leads for additional business through the port of Walvis Bay. Last December, the vessel Aidamira, a passenger ship carrying 1 301 passengers and 800 crew members docked at Namport's passenger berth 9. “The vessel is the first of seven-passenger vessels that are expected to call at the port of Walvis Bay in January 2020. The Aidamira will be making two more returns before the end of January,” said Namport's public relations officer, Edith Kukuri.Previously, passenger liners were handled at the cargo berths.Meanwhile, Namport's new container terminal is operating at 30% capacity a few months after its inauguration. Harry attributes this to business growth in the Walvis Bay Corridor Group and Zambian and the Democratic Republic of Congo markets.“There have been notable, humbling and immediate increases in container volumes handled at the new container terminal in comparison to those handled at the old terminal,” said Harry. Harry told The Namibian that there has also been an increase in volumes handling of twenty-foot equivalent units, which stands at 13 000 a month compared to10 000 at the old terminal. “The increase in TEUs (twenty-foot equivalent units) has largely been underpinned by the very good improvements in the volumes of imports and exports destined for the hinterland markets of Zambia and the Democratic Republic of Congo,” he said. The old port terminal is now being used as a multi-purpose terminal for handling both containerised and non-containerised cargo such as chemicals and various metal products.

3.7 Entrepreneur donates to pensioners and the unemployed New Era|08/01/2020

A total number of ten households of elders and unemployed residents have benefited from food items donated by the upcoming local entrepreneur at Khorixas. The aim of the donations is to help the needy to get through the month of January, owner of RJ Investments, Richard John Dawids (42) told NAMPA, here today. January can be a very challenging month considering the unemployment rate and also elders that have finished the pension money during the festive season. I am doing this out of good faith. I believe that plowing back into the community is the right thing to do, he said.Dawids added that the donation of food items to needy will be an annual thing. One of the beneficiaries Victoria Nanus (92) said that the only decent meal she has had was during the month of November, as she did not get any donations last year. As I am sitting here I am very hungry. I am sure God has sent you in the form of an angel to my house. I am very grateful. I was wondering where my next meal would be coming from. God has answered my prayers, she said.Another beneficiary living with ten unemployed persons at her home, Elizabeth Klim (60), said that she has been facing difficult times every January and the food items will help them get through January worries. I am speechless. I have many mouths to feed. I am thankful that I am part of the beneficiaries. God will bless Dawids for coming to rescue us. Who in Khorixas would have come to our house just like that and donated

28 food? May God bless him, said Klim. Lydia Kordom (75) said that God has seen her struggle.He truly will be blessed. I have been struggling and I am sure this food will help my household survive this month. I was praying that somebody helps me at least with food yesterday, my prayers are answered, she said. Three unemployed residents aged between 44 and 47 also benefited. Donated items include 10 Kg Rice, 10kg Maize meal, 2 litter cooking oil, 5kg Sugar, and 10 Kg flour.

3.8 Groot Aub languishes in poverty The Namibian|10/01/2020

Groot Aub, located some 50km south of Windhoek, may have been officially incorporated into the City of Windhoek, but development is yet to trickle down to its residents.Government officially incorporated the Groot Aub village into the City of Windhoek in 2017. Residents say the lack of access to basic amenities has brought a great deal of difficulties to their daily lives and exposed them to dangers. Community leader Inita Witbooi (40), who was born and raised at Groot Aub, says they have tried numerous times to engage the Windhoek Rural constituency councillor concerning the issue of bringing basic services to them, however, their efforts were futile. “We are apparently part of the City of Windhoek now and there is no difference. Letters have been sent to them but no response till now. We even wrote to her last week,” she says. She says service delivery and development has only been happening on one side of the informal settlement and, as a result, some residents have taken it upon themselves to bring electricity into their homes. “Nothing has been done for us living this side for years now. If you come here at night you will see the difference. My house is dark, the other side is bright,” says Witbooi. “Many people have given up fighting for their rights and have gone as far as getting electricity illegally from other people's houses,” she adds. She says there are approximately 12 locations at Groot Aub without electricity. The mother of four says her daughter was burnt by a candle because of lack of electricity in her home. “Last year January, my daughter, who is four years old now, got her hair and the side of her face burnt by a candle that was standing on the table,” she recalls.Gregory Lawrence (56) says they would just like to have the normal day-to-day necessities for them to make a living. “We are trying to make gardens to help the community but the problem is that there is no water. We want to bring services closer to the people by registering businesses and shops but there is not electricity,” he complains.Lawrence says the closest water point is a borehole about 500 metres away. He says children, the elderly and those with chronic illnesses in the informal settlements are faced with a number of challenges due to a lack of electricity.“I even have a five-year-old child who was diagnosed with diabetes last month. There must be electricity so that there can be fridges running for their medication to be kept cool,” he says.Lawrence has a gas fridge in his home. However, he says it tends not to work properly as the weather is too hot.ZinedineWillemse (18) says living without electricity has had a negative impact on his school performance. “Living without electricity is affecting our studies badly because we don't have much lighting to study. I didn't even pass my Grade 9 this year,”WangeGariseb (18) says he has difficulty studying at night, as it strains his eyes. “Reading books in the dark is not good for our eyes. It's also not clear to see in the night using a candle when studying,” he says. GerherdineGaroës (67) is a pensioner who lives with eight children. She is unable to walk and uses a wheelchair to get around.Due to her financial circumstances, she cannot afford gas and, therefore, cooks on an open fire every day.She says they all live off her pension as her 38-year-old son, who was the breadwinner in the family, has been hospitalised. “I used to receive help from my son but he has fallen ill and has been hospitalised in Katutura hospital for three weeks. Now he, too, is like a child and cannot contribute to the family financially,” she says. Responding to questions asked by The Namibian, Penina Inga-Ita said the illegal erection of structures has made it very challenging to bring development to the informal settlement. “Someone sits where the sewer network and water pipes are meant to pass. Now, how are you meant to pass that pipe there? That delays development. Those are the realities on the ground,” she said. She said in 2009, the Khomas Regional Council conducted a mapping exercise where it cleared plots for schools, a police station and to expand the clinic, however, there are currently houses on those plots. Inga-Ita said a lot has been done since the

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City of Windhoek took over in 2017. She said water pipes have been connected to a borehole; roads have been improved; mass lights have been erected; and people have access to clean water. “We used to go two months without water from our taps and currently, we go two days. Yes, it's not an ideal situation, you would want to have it 24/7,” she said. Inga-Ita said the City of Windhoek has drilled five boreholes and are waiting for electricity connection so that it can pump water. “You can see that there is development, which shows you that the municipality is working,” she said. “There was a community, which for two years before the city came in 2017, did not receive water. People were drinking water from open wells and pits that were not fit for human consumption. We must appreciate,” she added.

3.9 Priorities reopening of Rundu abattoir-Kerfu New Era|13/01/2020

The Kavango East Regional Farmers Union (Kerfu) has made an impassionate plea to the incoming Meatco CEO Mushokabanji Mwilima to consider the reopening of the Rundu abattoir. The abattoir has been under construction since 2014, but its opening has been delayed because of financial constraints on the part of the ministry of agriculture. It was supposed to be fully completed by January 2017. Once operational, the facility will serve as a market for livestock, mainly cattle farmers in Kavango East and those from outside with access to the abattoir. “Kerfu recognises and appreciates the extensive experience and leadership which Mr Mwilima demonstrated as the executive director of the Namibia National Farmers Union (NNFU). The union has no doubt that with his versatility of experience and leadership – both nationally and abroad – he is poised to provide exemplary leadership,” said Kerfu chairperson Adolf Muremi. Mwilima was last week confirmed as the new Meatco CEO and will take over from VekuiiRukoro who parted with the corporation in 2017. During his time at NNFU, Mwilima promoted for markets for all farmers in Namibia and was vocal in calling upon domestic institutions tasked with the creation of markets for agricultural products to create space for locally produced agricultural products. He was a proponent of local value addition and the Growth at Home strategy. “It is in the same vein that Kerfu is calling upon the new CEO for Meatco to make the opening of Rundu abattoir as one of his priority, since it is in line with Livestock Sector Transformation Strategy,” added Muremi. “It is with this understanding that Kerfu is calling upon the entire farming community, agricultural organisations, stakeholders in the agricultural sector to support him in his new role as the head of Namibia’s flagship meat processor and exporter. Kerfu leadership and entire farming community in Kavango East Region stand ready to support him.” According to Muremi, Mwilima brings with him a wealth of experience and leaderships skills after overseeing the transformation of NNFU into a vibrant and recognised agricultural organisation regionally and internationally.

3.10 Windhoek East tackles unemployment New Era|13/01/2020

Khomas regional council’s Windhoek East constituency office has once again demonstrated that it remains at the forefront of driving self-employment in its community when owners of income generating projects recently received equipment or materials worth N$150 000 as part of efforts in fulfilment of government promise of assistance to the citizens in accordance with the policy of job creation strategies in all the constituencies. The beneficiaries received equipment such as electric generator, chest freezer, steel ladder, welding machine, safety construction helmet, gazebo, tents, braai cookware set, plastic cooler boxes, chairs with tables and many other items that aim at poverty-alleviation or employment creation in the constituency. The projects that received equipment include catering, plumbing, tourism, bread bakery, butchery, construction and hospitality that create self-employment and at the same time give employment to others within the constituency. The beneficiaries all agreed that the provision of materials or equipment to support small upcoming entrepreneurs, women, men and youth will always be a contribution in achieving a

30 secured livelihood and empowerment of communities or an effort to find solution for those individuals who cannot qualify to get loans at financial institutions for small projects or businesses. Most of the beneficiaries were grateful and acknowledged the value of the council and constituency office’s assistance and support to the growth of income generating projects in the communities of the region. Presenting the items to the beneficiaries, the councillor of Windhoek East constituency, Joyce Namuhuja, said that the auspicious occasion of yet another handover of equipment to various owners of income generating projects is the eighth time since the inception of the programme in the constituency, contributing to reduction of poverty, hunger and unemployment in the society.She was also quick to point out that a large section of the country’s most disadvantaged populations is engaged in small scale businesses and the government fully recognises the vital role that small businesses or projects can play in the country’s social and economic development which can improve the living conditions of people at all levels. In similar vein, the councillor added that the Income Generating Activities Grants (IGA) in the form of materials are given to community economically viable project owners in order to uplift their existing small business activities in becoming big, sustainable and competitive Namibian companies that make progress or working towards creating industry and employment in the constituency. The councillor reiterated the call to the beneficiaries to place full hard working attributes and be productive to achieve the expected goals of poverty- alleviation or job creation that are socially beneficial and economically viable in the constituency.

3.11 Making a difference Namibian Sun|14/01/2020

Launa Shafondjodi Shimbode used to conduct a home-based care programme and this is where she learnt that people are living in poverty and are in need of support. A 71-year-old retired nurse from Ondangwa is feeding about 300 people at the town and in her home village of Epinga in Ohangwena.Ondangwa mayor PaavoAmwele commended Launa Shafondjodi Shimbode for her efforts to assist in meeting the government halfway by feeding the needy. Shimbode gets support from her friends in Germany to buy food items. On Friday she handed over 300 bags of maize, cooking oil and canned fish valued at N$31 700. Amwele and Ondangwa Urban councillor Ronny Negonga were present at the handover ceremony that took place at Shimbode's house at Omwandi in Ondangwa.“I get support from Dr RaimoGroem Meyer and his wife Michaela Fink from Germany to buy food items for the people I feed in Ondangwa as well as Epinga village. I identify the needs of the people and then my two friends send money to buy the items. The food items are locally produced and are sourced from local suppliers,” Shimbode said. “I have a list of people whom I have identified for the food items from Omashaka, Omwandi and Olunkono in Ondangwa and Epinga village. This family also supports the Shimbode Combined School at Epinga with their school needs.” Shimbode said she worked as a nurse at the Centres for Disease Control and Prevention at the Onandjokwe Lutheran Hospital. She said she used to conduct a home-based care programme and this is where she learnt that people are living in poverty and are in need of support. She said in 2002 she met Dr Meyer and his wife who came to Namibia to do a research on HIV patients. “I assisted these two with their research by taking them to people in villages in Oshikoto, Ohangwena and Oshana. After they learnt of the condition of people, they started buying food items for the patients, who appreciated their support. “When they went back to Germany, they kept in touch with me and continued sending me money to buy food items for the patients. They also started supporting the Epinga Combined School. When I retired in 2007, they continued sending money to me to assist the needy in my community. They also come to Namibia every year for a vacation,” Shimbode said.She said Dr Patrick Ikeakanam, Diina-Maria Uugulu and Sofia Mbandeka are among those who assist her to identify the needs of the people. Amwele said that community assistance is a shared responsibility and cannot only be tackled by government. He said what Shimbode does demonstrates that she is selflessness and has the community at heart. “This does not mean that she doesn't have members of her family who are also in poverty, but she decided to share what she gets with the needy in the communities. This is very commendable and is what everyone else needs to do meeting government

31 halfway,” Amwele said. “I am just urging you that we have received very good rainfall; make sure you have backyard gardens at your houses and make sure your surroundings are clean.” One of the beneficiaries Maria Kongeleka, a resident of Omashaka, said that last year was a tough year in terms of survival and they could always rely on Shimbode for food handouts. She said this was the third time they received food at Shimbode's house.

3.12 Stationery brings hope The Namibian|14/01/2020

Hugs 4 Christ (H4C) have been busy raising funds for their Writers of Hope project during the first weeks of 2020. The project has been forced to scale down due to lack of funding, however the team are still aiming to provide stationery to a least 100 to 150 pupils at the start of the school year. Sadly, this will be the last year the project donate stationery to the learners at the School for the Hearing Impaired. Next year they hope to donate to a different school to help more youngsters achieve their education dreams. H4C started the project to raise funds and buy stationery for vulnerable children in Windhoek. In 2017 and 2018 the Bankers Association of Namibia (BAN) was also involved in the project. Last year BAN hosted a stationery drive which complemented the Writers of Hope project.The Evangelic Mission Church (EMC) a Khomasdal-based church in Windhoek will once again join hands with the voluntary group to provide learners with the items they need during the school year. They have been a financial partner of the project since its inception in 2017 and they are still committed to make a positive contribution to the community. Over the first two years of the project more than N$10 000 was raised through can shaking and other donations. All funds were used to purchase stationery and to finance the project. Windhoek Stationers offered the group discounted prices on stationery to ensure each learner received what they needed. “Writers of Hope give those children the hope they need for the future and a new hope for their education. It is these small things that make someone a better person in the future,” said Keenan Groeneveldt, co-founder of Hugs 4 Christ. During one of the previous handovers, the principal of the School for the Hearing Impaired said that they appreciate the initiative and that he and learners were grateful for the donation. He said it went a long way and it not only benefited the learners, but the teachers as well. EMC does not cover all the expenses of the group, as such H4C are appealing to the general public to help them make the initiative a success. The following stationery is needed: pens, pencils, rulers, erasers, sharpeners, scissors, book covers, plastic book covers, reams of paper, and glue sticks. Donations of any kind will be appreciated. Donors can also drop of working used toys as they will be donated to pre-school pupils. For more information, contact [email protected] or send a WhatsApp message to 085 722 8404.

3.13 Rehoboth meat suppliers bemoan abattoir closer New Era|16/01/2020

The town of Rehoboth remains without an abattoir after the closure of the town’s only abattoir, owned by the Rehoboth Community Trust, by the Rehoboth town council on 20 December 2019. But the action by the town council has left meat suppliers and butchery owners furious, as there is no other nearby place for livestock to be slaughtered. A letter seen by Nampa last Wednesday, dated 12 December 2019 and signed by town council CEO Simeon Kanime, gave notice that the last day of operations of Reho Abattoir was 20 December and urged butcheries to make all necessary arrangements to acquire or slaughter meat from any other approved abattoir, up until such time that Reho Abattoir would be operational again. “Action shall be taken against any person contravening sections of the General Health Regulation Act 121 of 1969 as amended,” the letter added. The stipulated provisions state that only butcher’s meat and dressed poultry which has been slaughtered in an approved abattoir and marked or stamped with an approved stamp may be placed, kept, prepared, displayed or sold in a butchery and that no person shall introduce or allow to introduce butcher’s meat, other than game, into the area of a local authority unless such butcher’s meat has

32 been slaughtered in an approved abattoir and stamped with an approved and registered stamp. On Friday local butchery owner Rudi van Wyk said no alternative was given as to where they may have animals slaughtered. “The closest abattoir at Bahnhoff is deemed not fit for animals to be slaughtered. This abattoir does consist of all the facilities to accommodate meat producers but the use of this facility is strictly prohibited by by-laws,” he said. The town council in an email reply to questions sent said the reason for the closure is because of findings of inspections conducted last year at the abattoir that confirmed that the current conditions do not comply with the standards stipulated in the General Health Regulation 121 of 1969. This, according to the town council, adverselyaffectsstakeholders as there are no alternative slaughter facilities in Rehoboth that comply with regulations. The council advised the butchers and butchery owners to assist abattoir owners to improve facilities to a required standard in order to fasttrack compliance and reduce the time of non- economic activities. The chairperson of Rehoboth Community Trust, Ronald Kubas, on Tuesday said the abattoir would re-open in the next two weeks.

3.14 The warehouse theatre opening soon New Era|17/01/2020

The Warehouse Theatre, which closed its doors for business last year after having been in the art and entertainment industry for three decades, is currently undergoing changes and transformation under new management and will be opening soon with no specific date mentioned. The owner of The Warehouse Theatre, Che Rousseau, said the parent company will now be known as The Brewers’ Market, under which the theatre will fall. “We want to keep the culture alive and create a hub for creatives,” he told Entertainment Now! Rousseau takes over the ownership from Mike Ott, who has been in charge of The Warehouse for 30 years. He said the new changes to be expected include a market which will be open throughout the whole week. “This will become a creative space where people from the central business district (CBD) and around the city can still go to after working hours, do a little shopping, have their hair and nails done and eat great food. We are diversifying: we have a barber in there, a tattoo artist, nail technician and food stalls,” revealed Rousseau. He said it’s not all about alcohol. “There will be a coffee shop, juice bars, dessert bar which caters different types of dessert and it will be called the Batter Bar,” said Rousseau.He stated they (The Brewers’ Market) will be providing space for industry experts to rent stalls. “I am happy to inform you that we have the likes of Melissa Poulton and Leah Misika on board, and they will be having the stalls at the market to promote their products, among others,” said Rousseau. Rousseau told Entertainment Now! That apart from the construction happening to revamp the place, all will be the same. “The Warehouse was all about live music, and that will continue. We are still going to have the same contributors, which include bits such as Free Your Mind, Spoken Word – we have them all on board. The Warehouse will still comprise of the old Loft, The Boiler Room, The Theater and the back seller, which will be the venue for the market,” he ecstatically explained.Having personally been in the entertainment industry for the past 10 years, with reference such as owning and managing Club Vibe, Rousseau said he had to step in because of the worries from the public. “The reason why I decided to revive this was due to the outcry from the community when The Warehouse closed down, I saw and felt the need to fill that gap in the market again. It is something that I am passionate about – something that I wanted to get into the industry of the creatives, catering to them and bringing them in one space,” he recalled. Rousseau further said the capital is like a ghost town, citing an opportunity to get artists paid for their work. “Windhoek is dead; there are only a few things to do and in the same vein, we are trying to create a market where we approach sponsors that haven’t been approached to come and support them and get the artists paid,” he stated.The space is owned by Broll Namibia, a leading and independent property services company that manages (Olthaver and List) O&L properties. “The Broll Group is also into creating a culture, plus with the little new adventures we are creating, they didn’t hesitate to give these projects of ours the green light – and that’s what we all love,” exclaimed Rousseau.

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3.15 Katima abattoir to start with test slaughtering Namibian Sun|22/01/2020

The Katima Mulilo export abattoir is expected to commence with test slaughtering by the end of February, if repairs on the quarantine camp have been completed.This is according to the Meat Board of Namibia, which has been asked to assist the abattoir with operations by the agriculture ministry. Funding for the process was transferred to the board.According to the Meat Board, contractors for the provision and service of cooling, water, electricity and security have already been appointed and are on site. “All cattle offered for slaughter at the abattoir must adhere to the requirements of the World Organisation for Animal Health recommendations for commodity-based trade.”Test slaughtering provides a chance to test the abattoir to assess whether all requirements of the Namibian environment are in order and functioning correctly.The board further said users should be mindful of the use of antibiotics, saying consumers across the globe are increasingly opposed to the use of these medications. “Namibia, as a meat export country, is judged according to its management of antibiotics. The use of antibiotics, under certain conditions, is allowed.” The Meat Board said antibiotics may only be used if recommended and prescribed by a veterinarian. “It is imperative to adhere to the withdrawal periods to avoid residue in the meat.” The board said the directorate of veterinary services has urged all role players to keep complete records of the import, distribution, sales and usage of these drugs. The availability of these records enables the directorate to certify Namibia’s meat exports with increased confidence. In case of uncertainty, contact your nearest state or private veterinarian. Furthermore, the Meat Board reminded producers that animal health declarations for July to December must be submitted by the end of January. These declarations can be submitted online through NamLITS or in hard copy. Hard copies must be submitted to a local state veterinarian. Producers are further reminded that a proof of receipt slip must be requested from the veterinarian's office when the declaration is submitted.

3.16 Mayor explains Babylon move The Namibian|22/01/2020

Windhoek mayor FrancinaKahungu yesterday explained her decision to move the usually posh mayoral office to the Nathaniel Maxuilili Community Centre in the Babylon informal settlement. “My theme or the key idea of running the office for 2020 is ‘taking deliberate but cautious action for a balanced agenda for Windhoek’,” she said. Kahungu said she wants her term to take deliberate actions, yet they should provide balanced services to all Windhoek services. Hence, she chose the relocation of her office to Babylon’s informal settlement. Babylon is one of the first informal settlement areas to be established in Windhoek and is home to thousands of people, facing an assortment of challenges. Kahungu, however, announced that the office of the deputy mayor would remain in town, where it would serve residents residing in the suburbs, while she will cater for all inhabitants of the informal settlement. “I know people are losing patience, especially in informal settlements – to the point they don’t even want to hear what we are saying. They think we are just promising. I ask them to continue having that patience. The central government, through the Ministry of Rural and Urban Development, is availing some funds so we formalise the informal settlements,” she stated. She said they are doing all these actions in line with the declaration, which was made by President Hage Geingob when he declared the situation in the informal settlement a crisis. She further pleaded with residents not to grab land illegally in order to pave way for proper demarcation of land. Kahungu said she started cleaning her new office as early as December last year, while she moved in this week. She said the centre, which was funded and donated by the National Housing Enterprise (NHE) to the municipality, is already equipped with emergency services such as a fire brigade, while it also houses a library for the community. “The mayor of Windhoek will be here at Nathaniel Maxuilili Community Centre in Babylon. The mayor has to walk around Windhoek and see where we need to improve. So, my office through 2020 will be here. If I am not

34 here, since mayoral is not full time, then my officials will be available to attend to residents’ needs,” she noted.

3.17 Narubes lauds stakeholder support for feeding programme New Era|22/01/2020

The Tsintsabis Combined School’s feeding programme has received resounding support from stakeholders since its implementation in 2004, acting principal ChristalinaNarubes has said. Narubes, in an interview withNampa at the school over the weekend, applauded members of the community for volunteering to prepare the meals for the learners. She also acknowledged the contributions of government and corporate organisations to the feeding programme.The acting principal explained that the government contributes maize to the school, while Namibia Free Caterers/Tulipamwe donates a weekly consignment of vegetables, and Tsumeb-based Dundee Precious Metals donates a monthly food voucher worth N$800. “Last year, we were fortunate to receive a one tonne donation of fish from a fishing company at the coast, and we have been preparing this high protein- concentrated diet for our children,” Narubes stated. She added that the feeding programme encourages children from the marginalised San community to attend school. Tsintsabis Combined School also produces its own food through aquaculture and gardening, which produces tilapia fish, maize, spinach, tomatoes, beans, onion and carrots. In addition to helping with the preparation of meals, members of the community volunteer their labour for the school’s aquaculture and gardening projects. “Our fish farming produces enough fish for the feeding programme and to sell to the local community, which helps to generate revenue for the maintenance of project,” Narubes said, adding that the school implemented the two projects so that it does not rely solely on handouts. She explained that only 86 learners, who are accommodated in the school hostel, are not catered for by the feeding programme. “They (hostel learners) cannot benefit twice, as they receive food in the hostel,” Narubes said. Situated in the Oshikoto Region’s Guinas Constituency, 62 kilometres north of Tsumeb, Tsintsabis Combined School has over 795 learners from pre-grade level to grade 9, and 25 teachers. It was established in military barracks of the then colonial administration by current Guinas constituency councillor Betty Kaula in 1993. At that time, it catered for 135 San children.

3.18 Nanso to help less privileged students New Era|22/01/2020

The Namibia National Students Organisation (Nanso) launched a project called ‘Fix my home’ to rescue students from informal settlements whose houses are affected by rain. The project was launched after an accounting student from the University of Science and Technology (NUST) BeathaIileka shared her story on social media about how she used her non-tuition fee to renovate her mother’s house, which, however, was not properly constructed and a part of the house was damaged by rain. According to Iileka, she spent around N$10 000 of her refund from the Namibia Students Financial Assistance Fund (NSFAF) to renovate the house and buy necessary items such as furniture. Iileka told Youth Corner she has been struggling to study at home, as the space in the house is limited, which pushed her to renovate the house and create space for her to study. “2018 was a challenging year for me, and I am glad I got the non-tuition fee which helped me to assist my family, even though the construction company that we hired to renovate our house did not do us any justice,” said the youngest of four siblings. Nanso partnered with the Vocational Training Centre to ensure they renovate the houses of students who are affected, as they have attributed the living conditions of some students to their performances. “As Nanso, we can no longer afford to keep quiet on issues that are affecting young people because we took into consideration that before they are students or learners, they are also part of the society,” said Nanso president Simon Taapopi at the launch of the project in Greenwell Matongo settlement. According to Taapopi, Nanso is on a mission to rescue students who are in a similar situation – not only in Windhoek but also other parts of the country. As part of their many projects, Nanso also renovated the visually impaired centre in Rundu,

35 adding educational areas to ensure students receive improved education. Even though part of the funding is from the organisation’s budget, Nanso is calling upon those who are in the manufacturing and construction industry, and other private sectors to get on board and assist where they can. “We do not necessarily need money: we need corrugated irons, cement, bricks and other building materials to build shelters for our students,” he further urged. Taapopi also urged the government to put the construction of a students’ village into work, as it is the only way to fix the problems faced by Namibian students. Iileka’s mother HambeleleniKalenga expressed her contentment to Youth Corner, saying even though a part of her house was destroyed, her daughter helped the family with the little she had.

3.19 A beacon of hope Namibian Sun|23/01/2020

The Tsintsabis Combined School's feeding programme has received resounding support from stakeholders since its implementation in 2004, acting principal ChristalinaNarubes said.During an interview at the school over the weekend, Narubes applauded members of the community for volunteering to prepare meals for learners. She also acknowledged the contributions of government and corporates to the feeding programme. Narubes said government contributes maize to the school, while Namibia Free Caterers/Tulipamwe donates a weekly consignment of vegetables and Tsumeb- based Dundee Precious Metals donates a monthly food voucher worth N$800. “Last year, we were fortunate to receive a one tonne donation of fish from a fishing company at the coast and we have been preparing this high protein-concentrated diet for our children,” she said. She added that the feeding programme encourages children from the marginalised San community to attend school. Tsintsabis Combined School also produces its own food through aquaculture and gardening, including tilapia fish, maize, spinach, tomatoes, beans, onion and carrots.In addition to helping with the preparation of meals, members of the community volunteer their labour for the school's projects. “Our fish farming produces enough fish for the feeding programme and to sell to the local community, which helps to generate revenue for the maintenance of project,” Narubes said, adding that the school implemented the two projects so that it does not rely solely on handouts.She explained that only 86 learners accommodated in the school hostel are not catered for by the feeding programme. “They (hostel learners) cannot benefit twice, as they receive food in the hostel,” Narubes said. Situated in Oshikoto's Guinas Constituency, 62 kilometres north of Tsumeb, Tsintsabis Combined School has over 795 learners from pre-primary to Grade 9, as well as 25 teachers. It was established inside the military barracks of the then colonial administration by current Guinas Constituency councillor Betty Kaula in 1993. Back then, it catered for 135 San children.

3.20 B2Gold donates veterinary unit to Unam The Namibian|28/01/2020

Mining company B2 Gold Namibia has donated a veterinary unit worth N$3,2 million to the University of Namibia. The unit, located at the university's Neudamm Agricultural College near Windhoek, is designed to provide students with essential training and will also provide training, research and clinical services to both state and game farmers. It is also designed as a quarantine holding area for the export of wildlife and will be used as a wildlife auction facility. Speaking at the handover on Friday, B2 Gold Namibia managing director and country manager, Mark Dawe said the sustainability of wildlife should be the biggest component of Namibia's wildlife sector. He noted that the company's vision and values recognise environmental stewardship and social responsibility as integral components of business in today's world. “When we support wildlife, it is about passion, as we believe that wildlife and economy in Namibia go hand in hand,” Dawe said. Unam's acting vice chancellor, Ellen Namhila, said the unit will enable students to gain the necessary training to provide the university with qualified veterinarians to serve the farming sector. The dean of the university's faculty of agriculture and natural resources, Anna Marais, said Unam's school of veterinary medicine

36 has been in operation since 2014, producing its first 17 veterinarians in December 2019. She noted that the veterinary undergraduate course includes three modules on wildlife clinical studies, which aim to provide a foundation for veterinary science as it relates to wildlife conservation and the game industry. “The curriculum includes wildlife science because of the heritage of wildlife we see in Namibia. The primary goal is to provide the graduates with the managerial skills to monitor and maintain a healthy population of wildlife in Namibia and to deal with the challenges of wildlife conservation and the ever-growing game industry,” she emphasised. Since its inception, the school of veterinary medicine has registered a total of 150 students.

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4 Environment & Human Health

4.1 Agriculture ministry to revive orchards New Era|03/12/2019

Several orchard projects under the management of the Ministry of Agriculture, Water and Forestry in the Oshikoto region are in a beleaguered state, as plants have wilted, while workers have abandoned the site, which is now left at the mercy of community volunteers. About nine orchards are affectedacross the region, with the worst being that in Omuthiya where water was cut off by the town council but has since been reconnected, New Era is informed. The once-flourishing orchards, which were sought to be a closer source of fruit supplies, have been in stutters for the past few years for the obvious reason of “no money.” According to the ministry’s forester in Oshikoto Monika Amutenya, the projects have struggled to live up, as there is no money for the upkeep. Hence, many of the projects are now on the mercy of the community, who has taken it upon themselves to water the plants and do a bit of maintenance where possible. “We are waiting for the ministry to pronounce itself on the operation of these orchards because as it stands, there is no money for it. Until then, we will know the way forward. The workers left because there was no money to pay them,” briefly stated Amutenya. Furthermore, she said the Omuthiya project is worse, as it is in townland, and its water has been cut off; hence, volunteers cannot do much because there is no water at all. AkwilinusHinananye, also a forester at Onankali, said they are on the path to revive the orchard to serve its purpose. Right now, it is left in the management of the community, who also benefit by making gardens and reaping from the fruits, he said. Adding that the ministry is devising an operational management plan.

4.2 Less smoke, more income Namibian Sun|04/12/2019

Smoke reduction, lucrative by-products and a 24-hour burning cycle were the hot topics at a recent field day of the Namibia Charcoal Association (NCA). A total of 157 guests came to Farm Aimeb north of Outjo to explore options for the modernisation of Namibia's oldest biomass industry. “We know that smoke is a problem and we are addressing this,” said NCA manager Michael Degé. “We understand that there needs to be a financial incentive to reducesmoke.”The smoke from charcoal production has valuable ingredients. The NCA has started a practical research project to develop a simple and robust setup with which producers can harvest by-products from smoke andsignificantly increase their income. EbenVisser, a chemical technician from Outjo, built a distillation unit that harvests wood acid and tar. The smoke travels through a condenser pipe and a black box into a chimney.In the black box, tar and wood acid are collected. Each burning cycle produces around 40 litres of wood acid. According to the NCA wood acid, and specifically humic acid derived from the wood acid, is a food for soil bacteria andtherefore reduces fertiliser input. Both wood acid and tar can be used on farms or sold. Up to four kilns can be placed around the distillation unit.Estimates are that producers can double their income through the by-products. The desired side-effect is that smoke emissions are minimal. The NCA says that in the field 90% of charcoal producers are using the traditional round kiln. It is robust, and as it can berolled, also mobile. Extensive tests have been conducted to find ways how efficiency and quality can be improved while using traditional kilns. “It's all about fire and air. The way we burn has a huge impact on productivity and quality,” says Pieter Potgieter, a technicalexpert on charcoal production technologies. “With the 24-hour cycle you can use your day fully and increase your production significantly.” The NCA explained that wood needs to be sorted into piles of big, medium and small pieces. The day starts early, at 07:00. The kiln is filled up to a 60cm height with big pieces of wood. They burn for one hour. The kiln is then filled fully and the lid slightly closed. At midday the bottom is closed off completelyand at 17:00 the top is fully closed.

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4.3 300 000 males targeted for circumcision Confidente|04/12/2019

The Ministry of Health and Social Services with the support of the U.S. President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR) plans to have about 300,000 men and boys circumcised by 2021. Health Ministry executive director Ben Nangombe made the remarks at the launch of the scalping up access to expand voluntary medical male circumcision services in Windhoek recently. In September the ministry reached 150,000 men and boys with life-saving circumcision services, Nangombe said. “ Today we are launching the next phase in the goal to reach 300,000 males by the year 2021 with an ambitious five-year programme to reach an additional 250,000 men by 2024,” he said, adding that the programme would deal with challenges in urban areas and requires “innovative demand creation activities” to reach people who are not circumcised yet. Nangombe said the project should also bring safe high quality Voluntary Medical Male Circumcision (VMMC) services with innovations, such as mobile outreach programmes and use resources to ensure that the highest number of men is reached. “There is need to begin early infant male circumcision services, so in future the need VMMC services will not be an issue,” Nangombe said.U.S. Ambassador Lisa Johnson announced that the US government would provide close to half a billion Namibian dollars over the next five years towards the project to provide comprehensive VMMC services to Namibian boys and men over 10 years. “Our goal is to support the Ministry of Health in reaching as many Namibian men as possible to achieve another major step on the path to HIV epidemic control,” Johnson said. Namibian musician and VMMC ambassador Martin Mbwalu, known as King Tee Dee or The Dogg, said although it took him a while to decide to get circumcised; it has proven to have many benefits that many males need to know about. “It reduces the risk of sexual transmission of HIV-AIDS from women to men by 60 percent and protects against Sexual Transmitted Infections,” Mbwalu said. He added that circumcision does not completely protect one from getting infected. There is still a need to use other preventive measures, even if one is circumcised. The U.S. government also donated four autoclave machines, with one to be used in Khomas, another in Omusati and two to be used in Hardap region. The machines will be used to carry out industrial and scientific processes requiring elevated temperature and pressure. Autoclaves are used in medical devices to perform sterilisation and in the chemical industry to cure coatings and vulcanise rubber and for hydrothermal synthesis. The U.S. plans to donate a further 10 autoclaves next year for use in the remaining regions.

4.4 Hepatitis E cases Windhoek observer|05/12/2019

The Ministry of Health and Social Services and other stakeholders in Gobabis are working around the clock to curb the spreading of Hepatitis E in the region. Since the first case in the Omaheke Region was reported in December 2017, and about 137 other cases have been confirmed between March and November 2019. Out of the notified cases, one death has been recorded. Most of the reported cases in the region are from the Gobabis constituency, mainly from the Kanaan C informal settlement, where 123 cases were reported. This is a result of lack of clean drinking water, lack of sanitation facilities and open defecation in the settlement. Responding to questions emailed to him by Nampa, Omaheke health director Jeremiah Shikulo said regional and district health emergency committees have been activated and are in full operation leading and coordinating the outbreak response process with other line ministries. “The Ministry of Agriculture, Water and Forestry has provided four water tanks to the community of Kanaan, which the Gobabis Municipality are refilling on a regular basis. Water purification tablets are also being distributed to households on a daily basis by community health workers,” Shikuloadded. The municipality has also given inhabitants of the Kanaan C informal settlement permission to build their own affordable temporary toilets.

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4.5 MTC hands over N$ 841 000 to fight GBV The Namibian|06/12/2019

Proceeds from the MTC Namibia knock-out project, which amounted to N$841 320, were yesterday donated to four organisations which have played a role in fighting against gender-based violence (GBV). The handover took place in Windhoek, where representatives of the four chosen charitable organisations, namely Monica Gender Violence Solutions, Ecumenical Social Diaconate Action, Namibia Rural Women Assembly, and OmbetjaYehinga Organisation (OYO) were present.MTC corporate communications specialist John Ekongo said they gave the donation to the four organisations after a process that required organisations to apply in the hope of being selected.A total of 27 applications were received and subjected to scrutiny, while nine organisations were shortlisted before the final decision was made. “From the shortlisted organisations, four were successful after presentations. Throughout this initiative, we will enable and support business and civil society partners through financially capacitating them to best work to eliminate gender-based violence in the country,” stated Ekongo. He added that the idea is not law-enforcement or social work, but rather to contribute to tackling social injustice and promoting welfare in society. “As corporate citizens, we have a part to play in capacitating those who have the necessary expertise to address the challenges posed by these heinous crimes, but more importantly to study and try to root out [the] causes of such atrocious acts,” said Ekongo. Melanie Gaes, project coordinator for Namibia Rural Women's Assembly, said they feel happy to be given an opportunity to assist men and women fight GBV in Kavango East. “We realised that some men are victims of GBV, so we can help them speak up and fight against GBV,” she noted. Gaes said although they are based in Windhoek, but with offices all over the country, they opted for the money to be diverted towards Kavango East, where she said men endure GBV from women.

4.6 Opuo hospital without cleaning materials since April Windhoek observer|06/12/2019

The Opuwo State Hospital is without cleaning materials since April this year, Nampa has been reliably informed. The cleaning materials include refuse bags, brooms, mops, medical gloves (latex gloves), detergent soaps, sterilising liquid and floor polish among others. The situation, Nampa understands, is so dire that officials at the hospital have been forced to use their own money to purchase some of the cleaning materials while they wait from the central government to procure the same as per the norm.However, eight months down the line, there are no signs of relief in sight according to a senior official who preferred not to be named amid fears of victimization. We don't have any brooms. There are absolutely no cleaning materials. There are no plastic bags. This has been our problem for several months now, the whistleblower said. The senior official went on to charge that the situation is even worse at the Angelika Muharukua Maternity waiting home where expecting mothers are housed.At times, the maternity ward's floor is just a pool of blood. We try our level best to keep it clean but just imagine somebody having to use their own hands to carry a placenta, the source said. Officials at the hospital are now perplexed as to whether the situation that they find themselves in is due to shortage of funds in the State's purse or if it was due bureaucracy in the government's procurement system. We don't know if indeed it's because there is no money or if somebody is sabotaging the government. People are tired [of this situation]. That is why I am speaking to you now. We have been spending our own money but we are now, the source lamented. This dilemma is said to be cross- cutting and remains omnipresent at all health facilities in the Kunene Region, according to the informant. Although, this dire matter has been alleviated to the highest offices but to no success, the source added. On the opposing end, however, was Ben Nangombe, the executive director in the Ministry of Health and Social Services who refuted the claims on Thursday. This information cannot be correct because I was there [at Opuwo State Hospital] in September and it was one of the cleanest hospitals. So, there cannot be a lack of cleaning materials, Nangombe said before adding that he will familiarise himself with the situation to determine its gravity and legitimacy thereof.

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4.7 Zambezi veld fires cause havoc New Era|12/12/2019

Veld fires continue to destroy grazing for livestock and game in the Zambezi region. Regional governor Lawrence Sampofu told New Era yesterday the little grass, which most farmers relied on for the survival of their livestock, have been severely affected, especially in Kabbe North constituency. Asked how these veld fires started, he said they are not sure if it was deliberate or not. He appealed to people not to start veld fires, seeing there is drought and grass should be there for the livestock. The governor said the region did not experience livestock mortalities due to better grazing conditions. He said they had to seek help from the directorate of forestry to put out the veld fires in order to contain the situation. He, however, said there is hope after the region received good rains. He reported some parts of the Zambezi, particularly KatimaMulilo and nearby areas received some good rains up to 40mm last week. However, he said most parts of the region such as Sibbinda, Ibbu, Linyanti, Sankwali, Kasheshe and Muyako did not receive good rains yet. “We still have hope that rain will come, as it stopped again. The livestock in some areas are better, but in other villages they are deteriorating and dying due to drought,” Sampofu noted. Equally, he indicated Lake Liyambezi was still totally dry, while the Zambezi River is experiencing shallow water levels. Chobe and Kwando rivers are also low, with few streams having water. According to him, the water scarcity affected the livelihood of residents who mainly relied on rivers for fishing as a source of survival. Furthermore, he maintained that due to low or lack of water in the areas, livestock have to travel long distances in search of water. This, he says, has left many animals in bad condition. He said the government has availed an amount of N$19.2 million to connect water pipes in the region, in an effort to assist the people in dire need. Sampofu confirmed that some boreholes are drying up, while some are being rehabilitated.

4.8 Elephant wonder in the desert The Namibian|07/01/2020

While an elephant bull roamed through Erongo to Swakopmund on Christmas Eve, an elephant calf was born to the desert-adapted Huab herd in Kunene. Both are considered wonderful events as there is no record in modern history of a lone elephant walking towards the ocean near Swakopmund, and it is the first time in two years a desert elephant calf was born as part of a free- roaming herd which wanders through the dry Huab River in Namibia. “Christmas miracles do still exist with the birth of an elephant calf in the world's oldest desert,” said Sabine Kuhn of Elephant- Human Relations Aid. With an increase in elephant poaching, human-wildlife conflict and global warming, the birth and survival of this elephant calf ismiraculous given the extreme conditions it was born into. According to Kuhn, the two-week-old calf was discovered in December during a routine elephant patrol with a group of Elephant-Human Relations Aid conservation volunteers. “As heart- melting as all baby animals are, the calf was seen diligently following her mother and trying to hide in her shadows to avoid the harsh sunlight. The team continued to monitor the herd for a full week to ensure the calf's well-being and overall welfare of the herd,” she said. Despite ongoing drought in the region and increasing human-wildlife conflict, free-roaming African desert elephants have managed to survive in the semi-arid desert of Namibia for several decades. Temperatures here can reach 45°C in summer, which adds pressure on expecting cows. “The calf mortality rate in the southern Kunene is very high, with most calves unable to survive in these extreme living conditions of diminishing water and food resources. Most calves that are born in this particular part of Namibia die within a few days after birth, however, recent rainfall in the area and a determined spirit may be the reason why this calf is managing to persevere and is on her way to becoming a healthy, playful young elephant,” said Elephant-Human Relations Aid MD Rachel Harris.According to her, Namibia is one of the few countries that still tolerate free-roaming desert elephants, and together with local conservancies and conservation partners, such as Elephant-Human Relations Aid, the country aims to foster peaceful relationships between communities and their elephant visitors. Elephant-Human

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Relations Aid has been a key player in the region for over 15 years by helping to mitigate conflict situations by offering practical solutions to rural communities who have been negatively affected by elephant visits.”Seeing this newborn desert elephant roam freely together with her mother is the greatest Christmas gift. We hope she will survive through the summer,” said Harris. Together with neighbouring lodges, tour operators and the Elephant-Human Relations Aid field team, the calf and its herd are monitored regularly to ensure it is doing well and adapting comfortably to its environment. As for the lone bull that had a distinct tear in its left ear, it is a mystery how it ended up near Swakopmund, which caused a stir with hundreds of visitors flocking to see it and take photos and videos. It was walking towards the salt pans and nearby residential areas. “We think he came down the Omaruru River, and do not recognise him as one of the desert elephants from Ugab. He was apparently seen near Henties Bay the day before, and we believe that he followed the riverbed in search for water,” she told The Namibian.News of the elephant spread like wildfire and Elephant- Human Relations Aid, the environment ministry, Swakopmund municipal services, and other law- enforcement agencies had their hands full in ensuring the animal was redirected to the wilderness for its own safety and the safety of residents. “We tried to organise water for the elephant and received support from the municipality to provide water, which was provided by the fire brigade. Unfortunately, due to many spectators and the elephant's rising stress levels, he did not access the water in the first instance,” explained Harris. After the bull was encouraged further away from the community and growing crowds, and had moved further inland, he appeared calmer and more at ease. The environment ministry continued to stay behind the elephant to ensure his safety, and members of the public were supportive by providing assistance by offering lucerne and water, which were strategically placed on the route we wanted him to take, a kilometre ahead. The efforts were successful as the elephant drank around 100 litres of water once he reached the water point.

4.9 EIF Funds make a difference for San communities The Namibian|09/01/2020

The San community in the NyaeNyae Conservancy is using funds provided by the Green Climate Fund and the Environmental Investment Fund (EIF) to build a wall to protect water points in their village from elephants.According to the conservancy human-wildlife conflict is rare in the area, which has around 18 water points for the estimated 1 000 to 1 500 elephants. However, the drought that has devastated the entire country has put a greater strain on wildlife to find water, the conservancy said in a press release. “This search for water has meant that elephants are more likely to stray into the conservancy area inhabited by people. This means that there is a greater likelihood of village water points being attacked and damaged.” Protecting the water points is important to guarantee a secure water supply for the villagers and their gardens, the conservancy added. According to the conservancy many approaches to water protection have been tried over the years, but in NyaeNyae, the only approach that has proven to consistently work is a two-metre-high stone wall. The conservancy says these barriers have proven to be impenetrable, keeping the village's water supply safe. This has allowed the conservancy to invest in water-dependent activities such as livestock farming and agriculture to improve the San community's self-sufficiency. The Green Climate Fund and EIF project is funding the building of walls at three villages and the overhaul and servicing of all village boreholes in the NyaeNyae Conservancy over a 12-month period. Other than investment, the funds received from GCF/EIF represent development and empowerment for the communities.

4.10 Forestry stresses timber harvesting, transporting conditions The Namibian|15/01/2020

The Ministry of Agriculture, Water and Forestry (MAWF) has reemphasised that no fresh timber will be harvested until the already harvested timber is marketed and sold both internationally and locally as soon as possible. This was contained in a media statement availed to the media on Monday by the ministry’s public relations department, reemphasising the conditions set by Cabinet regarding the

42 already harvested timber lying in farms in the North-Eastern part of the country. The statement said Cabinet deliberated on the timber issue during the week of 3 to 6 December 2019, where it took note that there is a significant quantity of already harvested timber in Kavango East, Kavango West and Zambezi Regions. “It has come to the attention of the ministry, mostly through print and electronic media that the timber issue is still attracting huge interest and it is widely discussed. The ministry has further established that there are still some questions as far as timber harvesting, transport and marketing are concerned,” reads the statement. It said among other conditions, the ministry re-emphasises that no new or fresh timber will be harvested and local timber processors should be given first preferences to buy ahead of foreign processors. In addition, it said that no timber should be transported during night time in the regions and all timber should be loaded in truck containers in the presence of MAWF officials. MAWF, in conjunction with other stakeholders such as the Ministry of Environment and Tourism, the Namibian Police Force and custom officials had put measures in place to operationalise the task at hand as directed by Cabinet. Thus, the statement said that a team of 17 staff members were deployed to the regions and at check points such as Mururani, Bravo and Mpungu road blocks through which timber is being transported from the North Eastern Regions and the team has been working around the clock to ensure that all procedures are followed as per the given guidelines. “Due to the past holiday season, the team was on a break as from the 20 December 2019 and resumed the operations on 13 January 2020. However, there [was] no Namibian timber moving during the said holiday period as the ministerial staff members that operate at various strategic road blocks have been on duty throughout,” reads the statement.

4.11 New hospital wing at Okahandja still closed Confidente|16/01/2020

The Ministry of Health and Social Services has asked Okahandja residents to be patient as they try to put the final touches to the newly upgraded section of the local hospital, but has remained tight- lipped as to the causes of the delay and the contractors involved. Residents at the Garden Town have in recent weeks complained that the newly upgraded section of the hospital that is supposedly complete and ready for use is still standing idle, although fully furnished, while nurses and staff are making do with old and broken equipment in the old section of the hospital that is too cramped to adequately serve patients. “Last week I went there, and the scale is not working but the nurse admitted that the new section has brand new and fully functioning scales, among other things that are not being used because the section is apparently not yet open for use,” one resident told the Confidente.

4.12 Surgeries delayed due to hospital staff shortage The Namibian|17/01/2020

Various operations had to be cancelled at the Windhoek Central Hospital for the past few months due to staff shortages, as most of them are on leave. Some hospital staff have been on study leave, lecturing or doing postgraduate studies while critical medicine shortages remain an issue. The worst affected departments include the anaesthetic department, which lost employees whose contracts were not renewed, while some are on study leave. The acting chief medical superintendent at the hospital, Dr Farid Zam, confirmed these challenges at a press conference called to address issues of staff and medicine shortages in Windhoek yesterday. “There have been interruptions in elective procedures and operations. From time to time, we will have [interruptions], but these are occasioned by several factors. Generally, staffing is a problem,” said Zam. Zam could not provide details of how many surgeries were cancelled, saying they were unpredictable due to staff shortages. “You have a very thin staff establishment. If you lose one or two persons [sic], it can be a big problem, and sometimes they resign and you cannot do anything about it, and you have already planned with the regions on operations. “But we are recruiting private practitioners on a contractual basis to assist us. We have a memorandum of agreement in place,” said Zam.

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STAFF ESTABLISHMENT

He said the current staff establishment was set up in 1988 and has not been changed since, despite a review in 2003 that was not implemented. “The staff establishment was also set up before the school of medicine and now the very same doctors working in health facilities also have to teach them [students]. So there is more workload on the same doctors,” said Zam. He said the ministry is working on a programme that allows doctors on leave to be replaced to prevent gaps. Health minister Kalumbi Shangula, at the same press conference, said the entire ministry was facing staff shortages either due to lack of skills in required medical fields or because some retire, resign or are studying. He said this is why they are reviewing the staff establishment and structure to make it more responsive to the needs of the country.

CABINET APPROVES 4 000 POSTS

Referencing a comparative assessment done last year, Shangula said the ministry needs up to 7 338 additional staff members in different categories but finances do not allow this.“ It is for this reason the ministry has identified the most critical positions to ensure uninterrupted services,” said Shangula, adding that they have received Cabinet approval on this. NHe said as of January, the ministry filled close to 257 positions. “These include 135 registered nurses, 22 pharmacists, 64 assistant pharmacists, 16 radiographers and 20 assistant radiographers. This newly recruited health personnel will provide relief to the existing workforce,” said the minister.

PROCUREMENT

Shangula yesterday said they are leaving middlemen out of the procurement process for medicine and other medical supplies. He said there was unpredictability and lack of consistency when it came to the supply of medicine because there are no long-term contracts between them. “The ministry has been unable to procure sufficient quantities of pharmaceuticals and clinical supplies because the procurement threshold is limiting. The procurement process is lengthy and at times tardy,” said the minister.In addition, Shangula said companies supplying medicine do not always deliver the order they are given or sometimes they are late. He said due to inflated prices suppliers charge during buy- outs and emergency procurement activities “we get less value for money”. He said, as a result, a decision has been made to use a pool procurement mechanism allowing the ministry to buy vaccines directly from suppliers. Nangombe said the health sector is a critical one, as it affects the performance of the economy and ensuring that people get the best access to health care is vital. He said they have signed various memoranda of understanding with non-governmental organisations and the private sector to provide optimal services. The country has 34 hospitals, 44 health centres and 279 clinics.

4.13 Swakopmund elephant collared New Era|23/01/2020

The Ministry of Environment and Tourism (MET) successfully collared a male elephant that wondered off and was spotted in Swakopmund in December last year. The collaring was done for monitoring and management purposes of the elephant that is currently grazing in the Omaruru River. The elephant was found close to the houses in Mile 4 in Swakopmund on 24 December last year. MET officials and the Namibian police along with other emergency services successfully redirected the elephant to its current location. MET spokesperson Romeo Muyunda yesterday said a team from the ministry darted and collared the elephant under direction and supervision of veterinarian Janine Shape.“ Blood samples were also taken to test the elephant for possible diseases. He also received vitamins to boost his immune system after the long journey from the coast,” Muyunda said yesterday. According to Muyunda MET is confident that the elephant will survive as his current

44 locations have good vegetation and a water point. “In the meantime, our staff members will continue to monitor him until such a time when we are sure and guaranteed of his wellbeing. This is indeed a clear demonstration of MET’s commitment to protect our natural resources in particular our wildlife,” Muyunda said. He added that the elephant’s condition significantly improved since it arrived in the Omaruru River from Swakopmund.

4.14 Heavy storm causes massive damage in Tsumeb New Era|29/01/2020

Strong wind and heavy rain left several people injured after a severe storm battered Tsumeb on Monday. The storm caused massive damage to property, while trees were uprooted and blown over power lines. An emergency rescue committee consisting of Cenored, the Tsumeb Municipality and Dundee Precious Metals Tsumeb was setup to join forces and clear the streets and private property whose structures collapsed while some trees fell on the road blocking the paths. Municipal spokesperson Stella Imalwa-Nangolo told New Era on Monday evening that two people, including an elderly woman sustained injuries in separate locations after in one instance the house partially collapsed, while in the other a tree fell on the roof. Mayor Matheus Hangula yesterday said the number of people injured went up to five, including learners who sustained minor injuries. “We are at the moment busy clearing and conducting an assessment, thereafter a detailed report will be released to ascertain the extent of damage and how many residents were actually affected,” he said. Areas such as Endombo compound, which house thousands of squatters, are among the worst hit.

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