Opportunities for Tourism
In the Western Suburbs of Windhoek
Peter Emmet Katina Montez Lindsey Robbins
Opportunities for Tourism
In the Western Suburbs of Windhoek
An Interactive Qualifying Project Report Submitted to the Faculty of WORCESTER POLYTECHNIC INSTITUTE In partial fulfillment of the requirements for the Degree of Bachelor of Science By
Peter Emmet Katina Montez Lindsey Robbins
Date: May 5, 2004
Report Submitted to: Professor Arthur Gerstenfeld Professor Susan Vernon-Gerstenfeld City of Windhoek, Tourism Division Chief of Tourism Marina Jarrett Manfred !Gaeb
Opportunities for Tourism in the Western Suburbs iii
Executive Summary
In many developing nations, communities are at an economic disadvantage due to their history. These areas can be rich in cultural and historical interests, and yet due to their developing status it can be difficult for anyone to notice their true attractiveness. Once in a depressed economic state, many communities find it difficult to rise above it on their own. To assist in their improvement, some developing countries have turned to tourism as a means of bringing more money into the community. Namibia is one such country.
Katutura, a western suburb of the city of Windhoek, capitol of Namibia, is a destination the City of Windhoek‟s Department of Economic Development, Tourism and Recreation would like to see benefit from tourism. In 2003, a group of three students from Worcester Polytechnic Institute traveled to Namibia to work with the
Tourism Division in researching tourism in Katutura. Their focus was to create a set of recommendations to improve the Katutura Heritage Route, a proposition to increase tourism by providing a historical and cultural route through the suburb. The conclusions they made revealed that many places in Katutura were not yet ready for an increased volume of tourists primarily because they did not meet some basic tourism standards. Katutura is also not very developed or easy to navigate. Finally, there is a problematic lack of awareness by many people in Katutura as to what the benefits of tourism are and why they should care about such development.
This year, 2004, our project was more focused but also kept the previous group‟s recommendations in mind. We were assigned two developing businesses to study: Otjikaendu Den, affectionately known as Mama Melba‟s, and Ôasa Taradi, a needlework craft shop. Our goal was to prepare the two businesses for an increased volume of tourists so the community may benefit from the additional currency that
Opportunities for Tourism in the Western Suburbs iv would flow into Katutura. The objectives we used to accomplish our goal consisted of performing an in depth analysis of the businesses and the environments they are located in, as well as determining the financial and social implications involved with each businesses‟ development. Using this data, we created a set of recommendations as well as a strategic plan for each business to begin implementing immediately. In addition to proposing plans for each business to follow in their pursuit of development, we also began implementation of some of the plans.
Our primary recommendation for Otjikaendu Den was to form a partnership with Victory Women‟s Cultural Group, a youth group that performs traditional song and dance locally in Katutura. To implement this, we initiated formal contacts and introductions between the culture group and Otjikaendu Den. We focused on creating an agreement between the two parties to work together to mutually benefit from the tourism industry.
In addition to increasing the cultural character of Otjikaendu Den with the partnership with Victory Women‟s Cultural Group, there were improvements necessary in regards to the presentation and restaurant infrastructure. In visiting
Otjikaendu Den several times, we observed a strong presence of flies that sometimes travel out into the dining area. We found this uncomfortable and recommended a more sophisticated food storage technique in order to alleviate this problem. In addition, we recommended that Melba Tjahere follow her blueprints that address the addition of ablution facilities and expansions to her dining area. These would all make the tourist feel more comfortable in her restaurant.
Our primary recommendation for Ôasa Taradi was to develop their storeroom into a more attractive display setup as well as establish inventory and stay organized.
To implement this, we acquired a stock from the products the women sell at Namibia
Opportunities for Tourism in the Western Suburbs v
Craft Centre and displayed them attractively in their storefront. Then we organized the extra items and stocked them in cabinets with labels to stay organized to monitor sales and demand.
Following the set up of their store front, we recommended that the women of
Ôasa Taradi stay organized and keep track of their inventory. In order to keep their storefront stocked, we recommended that each woman create an extra several products each week to form a more highly developed inventory. Also, if they had more items in stock, they could consider lowering their prices by a small percentage, selling in sets, and increasing sales, in the end earning more. The ladies would also benefit from some basic training in business. We therefore recommended that the
City of Windhoek look into educating the women with some business fundamentals.
Since Otjikaendu Den is a restaurant and most tours run in the morning and the afternoon, Mama Melba does not receive the business she works so hard to accommodate. Similarly, Ôasa Taradi is also lacking in business because Penduka is a successful craft shop that is already on the route for most tour companies. In order to deliver more tourists to these two businesses, we proposed an alternative tour, The
Katutura Lunch Tour. The tour involves lunch and traditional entertainment at
Otjikaendu Den, shopping at Ôasa Taradi, and Soweto Market for fat cakes.
To prove to tour companies that The Katutura Lunch Tour is worth incorporating into their schedule, we ran one pilot tour with tourists willing to fill out surveys following the experience. We observed their attitudes during the tour, analyzed their responses to the survey, and spoke with the tour guides who conducted the tour to assess how effective the route was. We concluded that the tour has excellent potential to be a tour for those interested in Katutura. As a result of our findings, we also recommend that several additional pilot tours be conducted before
Opportunities for Tourism in the Western Suburbs vi putting the tour into full rotation.
With the continued support of the City of Windhoek and the sustained dedication of individuals such as Melba Tjahere, Victory Women‟s Cultural Group and the ladies of Ôasa Taradi, our recommendations will continue to prepare the community of Katutura to receive and benefit from tourism. Ultimately, the models of analysis used in this project can be utilized in the future to facilitate positive tourism development for other related business in the Katutura area.
Opportunities for Tourism in the Western Suburbs vii
Abstract
Working in conjunction with the City of Windhoek, this project concentrates on two businesses in Katutura with a focus on preparing them for tourism. In an effort to benefit the entire community by stimulating the local economy, we dedicated our research to developing the businesses and expanding their respective markets. After careful examination of the businesses, we created recommendations for the development of each business. In an effort to attain immediate results, we then proposed and tested a pilot tour that highlighted the businesses of this project and capitalized on our recommendations. Major tour companies could potentially use this tour when it is proven successful.
Opportunities for Tourism in the Western Suburbs viii
Authorship
Executive Summary: LR
Chapter 1 - Introduction: KM
Chapter 2 - Background: KM, LR, PE
Chapter 3 - Methodology: LR, PE
Chapter 4 - Data and Results: KM, LR, PE
Chapter 5 - Recommendations: KM, LR
Chapter 6 - Pilot Tour Results, Conclusions, and Future Directions: LR
Opportunities for Tourism in the Western Suburbs ix
Acknowledgements
Our Sponsors: Tourism Division of the City of Windhoek Marina Jarrett, Chief of Tourism Manfred !Gaeb Mariah, Grace, Gladys
Our Advisors: Professor Arthur Gerstenfeld Professor Susan Vernon-Gerstenfeld
Our Businesses: Otjikaendu Den and Staff Mama Melba Tjahere The Women of Ôasa Taradi Alexandrine Muzorongondo Selma Döeses Victory Women‟s Cultural Group
Other Helpful People: Martha Muulyau Christina Ross The neighbors of our businesses
Tour Companies: The Cardboard Box – Simon and Ephraim Face to Face Tours – Mandla Karongee Victory Women‟s Movement – Katrina Garises Sense of Africa – Kurt Schelther
Our Beloved Driver: Kennedy Chunga
Our Host The Polytechnic of Namibia Mbahupu Tjivikua
Our Translators from the Polytechnic of Namibia
And everyone else who proved to be invaluable to us in our research during our stay here in Namibia
Opportunities for Tourism in the Western Suburbs x
TABLE OF CONTENTS
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY ...... III
ABSTRACT ...... VII
AUTHORSHIP ...... VIII
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS ...... IX
TABLE OF CONTENTS ...... X
LIST OF TABLES ...... XII
LIST OF FIGURES ...... XIII
CHAPTER 1: INTRODUCTION ...... 1
CHAPTER 2: BACKGROUND ...... 4 HISTORY OF NAMIBIA, WINDHOEK, AND KATUTURA ...... 4 HISTORY OF TOURISM IN NAMIBIA ...... 7 TOURISM IN THE THIRD WORLD ...... 8 THE TOURISM PRODUCT ...... 9 COMMON PROBLEMS WITH THIRD WORLD TOURISM ...... 12 ALTERNATIVE TOURISM AND ECOTOURISM ...... 14 TOURIST/HOST RELATIONS ...... 16 COMMUNITY-BASED TOURISM PLANNING ...... 17 KATUTURA IN THE SCOPE OF TOURISM ...... 18 BUSINESSES IN KATUTURA OF POSSIBLE TOURIST INTEREST ...... 19 AID TO ARTISANS ...... 21 SUCCESS STORIES ...... 22 THE DEVELOPMENT OF SMALL BUSINESSES ...... 23 CHAPTER 3: METHODOLOGY ...... 26
CHAPTER 4: DATA AND RESULTS ...... 32 ÔASA TARADI ...... 32 Business Investigation ...... 32 Business Organization ...... 33 Expanding Education ...... 34 Expansion and Increased Demand ...... 35 Neighboring Household Interviews ...... 37 Strengths-Weaknesses-Opportunities-Threats (SWOT) ...... 39 Implementation ...... 40 Strategic Plans ...... 43 OTJIKAENDU DEN ...... 45 Business Investigation ...... 45 Employee Concerns...... 46 Neighboring Household Interviews ...... 48 Strengths-Weaknesses-Opportunities-Threats (SWOT) ...... 51 Implementation ...... 52 Strategic Plans ...... 53 PROGRAM EVALUATION AND REVIEW TECHNIQUE (PERT) ...... 53 CHAPTER 5: RECOMMENDATIONS ...... 55
Opportunities for Tourism in the Western Suburbs xi
CHAPTER 5: RECOMMENDATIONS . ERROR! BOOKMARK NOT DEFINED.
OTJIKAENDU DEN ...... 55 ÔASA TARADI ...... 56 VICTORY WOMEN’S CULTURAL GROUP ...... 56 KATUTURA LUNCH TOUR ...... 57 PILOT TOUR ...... 58 CHAPTER 6: PILOT TOUR RESULTS, CONCLUSIONS, AND FUTURE DIRECTIONS ...... 60 FIRST PILOT TOUR ...... 61 FUTURE DIRECTIONS ...... 62 CHAPTER 7: REFERENCES ...... 64
CHAPTER 8: APPENDICES ...... 68 APPENDIX A: THE SPONSOR FOR THE KATUTURA IQP PROJECT TEAM ...... 68 APPENDIX B: INITIAL INTERVIEWS WITH OTJIKAENDU DEN AND ÔASA TARADI ...... 70 Melba Tjahere’s Interview ...... 70 Ôasa Taradi Interview ...... 74 APPENDIX C: EMPLOYEE INTERVIEWS ...... 77 Interview with the staff of Otjikaendu Den...... 77 Interview with staff of Ôasa Taradi ...... 81 APPENDIX D: INTERVIEWS WITH NEIGHBORS OF OTJIKAENDU DEN AND ÔASA TARADI ...... 85 Ojtikaendu Den ...... 85 Ôasa Taradi ...... 97 APPENDIX E: TOUR DATA ...... 104 APPENDIX F: MENU FOR OTJIKAENDU DEN ...... 106 APPENDIX F: PRICE LIST FOR ÔASA TARADI AS OF 19 APRIL 2004 ...... 107 APPENDIX G: WET TOILET PRICING ESTIMATES ...... 108 APPENDIX H: PRICE QUOTES FROM J&L THATCHING CO...... 109 APPENDIX I: PERT DIAGRAM FOR OTJIKAENDU DEN ...... 110 APPENDIX J: PERT DIAGRAM FOR ÔASA TARADI ...... 111 APPENDIX K: STRENGTHS-WEAKNESSES-OPPORTUNITIES-THREATS (SWOT) ...... 112 APPENDIX L: PROGRAM EVALUATION AND REVIEW TECHNIQUE ...... 113 APPENDIX M: KATUTURA LUNCH TOUR PROPOSAL ...... 115 APPENDIX N: SURVEY FOR TOURISTS AND TOUR GUIDES KATUTURA LUNCH TOUR ...... 117 Responses for Thursday 29 April, 2004 Tour through Cardboard Box ...... 118 APPENDIX O: PRICE COMPARISON ...... 122
Opportunities for Tourism in the Western Suburbs xii
List of Tables
Table 1. Objectives and Methods...... 26 Table 2. SWOT Matrix for Ôasa Taradi ...... 39 Table 3. Otjikaendu Den's Neighboring Household Interview Results ...... 49 Table 4. SWOT Matrix for Otjikaendu Den ...... 51 Table 6. Tour Spreadsheet ...... 105 Table 7. Menu for Otjikaendu Den ...... 106 Table 8. Price List for Ôasa Taradi ...... 107 Table 9. Wet Toilet Price Quotes ...... 108 Table 10. Price Quotes for J&L Thatching ...... 109 Table 11. SWOT Matrix ...... 112 Table 12. Ôasa Taradi Example Price Comparison and Savings...... 122
Opportunities for Tourism in the Western Suburbs xiii
List of Figures
Figure 1. Graph of International Tourist Arrivals ...... 8 Figure 2. The Elements of the Tourism Product ...... 10 Figure 3. Influence of Ôasa Taradi as Indicated by Neighbors ...... 38 Figure 4. .Progess- Table Settings and Napkins ...... 41 Figure 5. Progress- Hanging Displays ...... 41 Figure 6. Progress- Table Cloth, Pillows, and Bags ...... 42 Figure 7. Progress- Towel Display ...... 42 Figure 8. Progress- Placemat Display ...... 43 Figure 9. Otjikaendu Den's "Aircon" System ...... 46 Figure 10. Neighborhood Use of Otjikaendu Den ...... 50 Figure 11. Victory Women‟s Cultural Group ...... 53 Figure 12. Tourism Division Structure ...... 68 Figure 13. PERT Diagram for Otjikaendu Den ...... 110 Figure 14. PERT Diagram for Ôasa Taradi ...... 111
Chapter 1: Introduction
In many developing nations, communities are at an economic disadvantage due to their history. These areas can be rich in cultural and historical interests, yet due to their developing status it can be difficult for anyone to notice their true attractiveness. Once in a depressed economic state, many communities find it difficult to rise above it on their own. To assist in their improvement, some developing countries have turned to tourism as a means of bringing more money into the community.
Many African nations have been able to bring tourists to their countries based on the environmental attractions that they offer. Between the fantastic landscapes and savannahs inhabited by exotic animals, Westerners and other travelers are drawn to the Namibian countryside, allowing the nation as a whole to benefit from tourism.
These tourists often do not stop for long in the cities, and the economically disadvantaged communities generally do not benefit from the tourism of the nation.
While a developing nation may prosper from tourism, the underdeveloped tourism destinations do not get much, if any, benefit from any of the money that flows into the community.
Katutura, a suburb of Windhoek, the capitol of Namibia, is one such area.
During apartheid, the blacks of Windhoek were forcibly removed to Katutura. Since obtaining their independence, the inhabitants and city of Windhoek have been working to increase the equality between the different groups of people. The city has created a Black Empowerment Programme, which seeks to advance the Previous
Neglected Sector (PNS). One way that they wish to do this is by bringing tourism to the PNS so that they may share in the tourist wealth. However, as an example of the situation mentioned above, the suburb historically has not been a popular tourist
Opportunities for Tourism in the Western Suburbs 2 destination.
In recent years, the Department of Economic Development, Tourism and
Recreation sought to make the Western suburb of Katutura a tourist destination. In her 2001 thesis, Ms. Brenda Ng‟andu laid the foundation for the Katutura Heritage
Route (KHR) with the assistance of others in the department.
In the Spring of 2003, a team of students from Worcester Polytechnic Institute came to Windhoek to work with Marina Jarrett, the Chief of Tourism, and Manfred
!Gaeb, City Promotions Officer. They spent time studying Katutura and evaluating it in regards to tourism. The team talked with the locals to determine their thoughts on the issue and if they were aware of the potential benefits to themselves from tourism.
They discovered that many of the people in the markets did not understand the concept of tourism. They found that many of the markets were not up to tourist expectations with regards to hygiene, specifically the presentation and handling of foods. The tourists with whom the team talked also informed them that they would like to have greater contact with the locals to create a richer experience. In addition, the route lacks signage and publicity. Upon talking with the Tourism Division, we determined that the latter is due to a desire to make the area more prepared for tourists before publicizing the Katutura Heritage Route (KHR).
In order to publicize the KHR, the Division would like to make sure that there are businesses ready for tourist stops; if the businesses need help facilitating improvements during this preliminary stage, the city may assist them. For this, our liaisons have requested our help.
Our goal was to prepare the suburb of Katutura for an increased volume of tourists by further developing the businesses along the KHR. We worked with two developing businesses along the route: a restaurant, and a sewing and embroidery
Opportunities for Tourism in the Western Suburbs 3 shop. Our project involved an assessment of each of the businesses to determine what improvements could be made and the financial and social implications of those improvements. Following the identification of these improvements, we constructed a strategic plan for each business that could be implemented after we left Namibia. In order to give credibility to our plans, we needed to test the feasibility of the recommendations. After some improvements had been made, we tested them by running a pilot tour through the businesses. Then we administered a survey to the tourists. These assessments have the potential to be utilized by the businesses or by the Tourism Division as a basis for grant or loan applications to implement the suggestions.
Opportunities for Tourism in the Western Suburbs 4
Chapter 2: Background
In order to assess accurately the potential for making Katutura a successful tourist destination, it is necessary to understand background information regarding the destination itself and the tourism industry as well. Having knowledge of the history of Namibia, the city of Windhoek, and the suburb of Katutura is crucial before applying a tourism development plan to the area. This chapter will cover these histories before progressing into the intricacies involved with developing a tourism product. These intricacies include tourist motivation, relationships between the tourist and the host, community based planning, and social implications that reflect the positive and negatives effects of tourism.
History of Namibia, Windhoek, and Katutura
Like many other African nations, Namibia‟s roots lie in nearly a century of colonial occupation. The Germans were the first to control the region and they held that control up through the turn of the 20th century. In 1920, after World War I, South
Africa solidified control of most of South West Africa, including Namibia. South
Africa then ruled for nearly the better part of the century until 1990, when Namibia declared its independence (Background Notes on Africa, 2004).
During the sustained South African rule, Namibia was shaped by the political motives of its ruling power. Racial apartheid was enacted around the capitol city of
Windhoek; those labeled as „coloured‟ were forcibly moved to a suburb named
Khomasdal, while those labeled as „black‟ were forcibly moved to the suburb that is now called Katutura. This strictly enforced segregation of residence among blacks, whites, and coloureds still today has a strong effect on the lives of the Namibian people. Apartheid divided along both racial and cultural lines. South Africa used this technique of segregation to deter unification and possible uprising of the black and
Opportunities for Tourism in the Western Suburbs 5 coloured majority. This technique worked to a large degree, and the evolution of the capitol city of Windhoek over time only further entrenched the divisions.
Namibia was liberated after a long and drawn out battle between the South
West Africa People‟s Organization (SWAPO) and South Africa (Background Notes on Africa, 2004). Cold War foreign policy also kept US attention on all new and developing nations such as Namibia. South Africa‟s release of Namibia can also be tied to the significant economic embargos placed upon South Africa by the UN
Security Council. The embargo had a strong impact on South Africa‟s decision to relinquish control of Namibia because US trade with South Africa in the early 1980s totaled around US$4.4 billion (Nicol, 1983). The loss of such a large trading partner therefore provided South Africa with a strong financial incentive to capitulate. Still, the dividing racial tactics used by South Africa during its time in power took its long term toll on Namibia. Namibians may have been freed from the oppressive foreign country‟s rule and apartheid legislation, but freeing them from the now de facto segregation has proven to be exceedingly difficult.
At the time of independence, on the one hand, predominantly white Namibians held control of the capitol Windhoek. The black majority of citizens, on the other hand, were still isolated in their homes set up by the former apartheid policies on the outskirts of the city. There was a dramatic disparity between the two racial groups‟ economic standing. At the time of their declared independence, the white populace, while only five percent of the total population, held approximately seventy-one percent of the total income (Weaver, 1996). While there were some jobs to be had by the economically disadvantaged black majority, black ownership of a business was rare.
With so little cash flow into the communities, local economies stagnate.
Opportunities for Tourism in the Western Suburbs 6
Having Windhoekers living in Katutura open up their own businesses is important in helping to nurture the local economies. Businesses create jobs for the community, put money into locals‟ pockets, provide them with an opportunity to spend the money they earn and ultimately help create a healthy and vibrant local economy. It is with this process in mind that the city of Windhoek has taken interest in helping local businesses in Katutura develop and prosper.
Still, over the last decade of independence, property values have evolved to the point where the poverty stricken people of the outskirts simply cannot afford to live in the far more affluent parts of the capitol. What had once been a politically and racially motivated divide has now become one of economy. Katutura had once been the relocation site for thousands of black Namibian citizens under South African control. Now, Katutura is a home out of economic necessity for the descendants of those relocated blacks. Windhoekers living in Katutura are therefore unable to take advantage of the already blooming economy of the rest of the capitol city (Pendleton,
1996). Creating businesses in their communities is the only option available to those entrepreneurs living in Katutura. This puts business growth at an economic handicap compared to the more developed sections of central Windhoek. For example, there is a 31.1 percent unemployment rate (Population, 2001). The historical racial apartheid has set the people of Katutura at a dramatic economic disadvantage. In his account of life in Katutura, Wade C. Pendleton (1996) writes, “Under force of economic segregation, racial segregation will continue for the unforeseeable future” (p. 168).
This is particularly applicable given the City of Windhoek‟s desire to improve the social standing of the Previous Neglected Sector (PNS) by focusing on the creation of better economic equality between the various ethnic and racial groups.
Opportunities for Tourism in the Western Suburbs 7
History of Tourism in Namibia Tourism may provide a means to overcome economic stagnation. Over the last twenty years, the capitol city of Windhoek has experienced a steady economic climb in its downtown sections. Tourism has increased significantly, and the economic standing of the city reflects the influx of money made from the industry.
Because of this growth, the Namibian Government has given increasing amounts of money to help develop the tourism industry. In 2003, thirty million Namibian dollars were given to the Namibia Tourism Board (Sherbourne, 2003). Due in part to its proximity to the primary airport, Windhoek contained more than thirty-five percent of the entire nation‟s private hotel accommodations in 1996, and serves as the main point of entry to the country (Weaver, 1996). Locations just outside the downtown areas of
Windhoek such as Katutura have the potential to tap into the tourism market as a result of their proximity.
Another large draw for tourists has been the national wildlife and scenery.
Namibia has maintained a relatively low population density for years now; the flora and fauna have seen remarkably little encroachment on their habitats by Namibian inhabitants. The national wildlife has consequently been used for both safaris as well as hunting expeditions and these industries have grown steadily over the last several decades to support this (Weaver, 1996). With the increasing number of tourists visiting the Windhoek area, the suburb of Katutura is in a position to build upon
Windhoek‟s menu of tourist destinations by developing Katutura‟s own suburban tourist attractions. Creating unique cultural businesses that cater to tourism in
Katutura would therefore help develop an even more robust and diversified selection of tourist stops for Windhoek (Pendleton, 1996). The places of interest in and around the capitol city could then attract people with both its spectacular scenery as well as its rich cultural history.
Opportunities for Tourism in the Western Suburbs 8
Tourism in the Third World
Over the last forty years, international tourism has increased significantly, and nations are realizing that they can benefit from this by applying a tourism development plan as a means of economic development. The World Tourism
Organization reports that from 1950 to 1990, the number of international tourist arrivals rose from 25.3 million to about 443.5 million; the amount of money spent during these trips also increased significantly (Brohman, 1996). Brohman (1996) points out that Algeria, Kenya, South Africa, and Zimbabwe accounted for much of the percent gain in tourist increase in 1991. According to Echtner and Prasad (2003), developing nations made up about thirty percent of the international tourist arrivals in
1999 (2003). The graph below shows that from 1960 to 1999, the number of international tourist arrivals rose from 20 million to over 600 million people.
700 International Tourist Arrivals
600
500
400
300
Millions of People of Millions 200
100
0
1950 1960 1970 1972 1974 1976 1978 1980 1982 1984 1986 1988 1990 1992 1994 1996 1998 Year
Figure 1. Graph of International Tourist Arrivals
Namibia, specifically, has also experienced a sharp rise in its international tourists. The city of Windhoek, in particular, has made a concerted effort to capitalize
Opportunities for Tourism in the Western Suburbs 9 on the money spent by the ever growing number of international tourists. The City of
Windhoek‟s efforts can be seen in the construction of several information kiosks that help assist tourists with the use of educational material brochures. The booths also offer a point from which tourists can be referred to a variety of tourist agencies and attractions. Using these tools, the city would like to present its rich and diverse culture and history to the world.
For the less developed countries, tourism has been viewed as an industry that provides jobs for areas with low employment rates and generates revenue for further diversification (Freitag, 1994). This is also true in Namibia. The Ministry of
Environment and Tourism in Namibia considers tourism as one of their rapidly developing industries. They feel that tourism is a tool that could effectively promote social and economic growth in the country. As previously mentioned, Namibia last year gave the Namibian Tourism Board N$30 million to help develop the industry
(Sherbourne, 2003).
The Tourism Product
In order to have a successful tourism industry that helps to increase the standard of living for a people, it is necessary to understand what brings a tourist to a particular area. Tourists have physical and emotional needs. The degree of satisfaction in regards to the needs of potential tourists will determine how successful the tourism plan will be in the future. Stephen L. J. Smith illustrates “The Elements of the Tourism Product” (1994, p.587) with five concentric circles, each circle representing a portion of what makes the tourism experience. See Figure 2. Each successive circle builds upon the circles it contains. The elements that each circle represents can then only be satisfied if those supporting circles are also satisfied.
The inside circle or the base of the tourism product is the physical plant which
Opportunities for Tourism in the Western Suburbs 10 is the site or facility that the tourist is visiting. Encompassed in this category are the weather, water quality, population, and conditions of the surroundings (Smith, 1994).
For the purpose of our project, the physical plant is Katutura. In Katutura, these characteristics of importance would be the availability of water, the diverse resident ethnic groups, and overall environment.
Figure 2. The Elements of the Tourism Product The next circle represents service, which is the next step after the physical plant. The physical plant would be useless without the contribution of services to make it functional to the tourist population. These services include management of the facilities as well as employees to maintain their functionality. The City of
Windhoek is responsible for managing the infrastructure that satisfies these needs.
The service characteristics of Katutura are the various businesses and services that allow people to take advantage of the location. These include bus and transport services, lodging, and essential stores and shops that provide supplies necessary to live and enjoy one‟s time in Katutura.
Opportunities for Tourism in the Western Suburbs 11
After understanding the physical plant and the basic services that are necessary to create the tourism package, hospitality must also be considered vital. A resort with friendly and helpful staff that goes out of their way to make the visitors comfortable will be more well-received than a staff that just carries out the assigned task with no personality or style. Hospitality is therefore imperative to the tourism product (Smith, 1994). Though Katutura is not a resort, customer service and hospitality are still vital to the tourist‟s experience. Such aspects of hospitality in
Katutura still need to be developed. This involves training those who would receive tourists in behavior that reflects the worker‟s desire for a good customer-business relationship, and makes the tourist feel comfortable. Hospitality in Katutura also extends to the presentation of the tourist attractions. This would include organized and attractive storefronts, clean dining areas, and quality products. When tourists in
Katutura feel comfortable and welcome, they become more likely to spend their money as well as return for subsequent visits (Smith, 1994).
Freedom of choice is the next segment in the circle arrangement. This circle refers to the range of options that make the tourism experience exciting and worthwhile to the tourist. When culture and history are the central attractions for tourists, it is important to fill up the destination with a wealth of various and diverse activities and experiences that showcase the diverse culture and history of that particular destination. In Katutura, this would involve a variety of activities that range from viewing and purchasing local crafts of cultural significance, to perhaps enjoying a traditional ethnic dish at a local restaurant.
Finally, involvement is the last step that completes the experience.
Involvement is the stage when the tourist feels completely comfortable and satisfied with the physical plant, service, hospitality and choices made available. Involvement
Opportunities for Tourism in the Western Suburbs 12 will help the tourist feel happy to be on vacation. Steven Smith stated that when the sense of involvement is combined with all the other elements of the model, a successful and satisfying tourism product is almost assured (1994). Provided that the other stages are up to the tourists‟ standards, people visiting places such as Katutura will wish to involve themselves in the culture of the people who live there. To accomplish this, foreigners will want to be received by the locals in a casual way such as sharing a drink at a bar, or enjoying some local customs or practices. Watching some traditional art forms such as singing and dancing are examples of ways to help satisfy the tourists‟ need to feel engaged in the environment (Smith, 1994). Once the visitor to Katutura feels content with respect to all these requirements, the tourism industry will flourish and grow. In a location such as Katutura, the growth of the tourism industry can mean more jobs, financial stability, and an improved quality of life.
Though we feel that this model accurately represents many tourists, it is important to realize that there are those tourists who do not fit the model. There are tourists who seek thrills and enjoy knowing that there is risk involved in what they are doing. There are also those that prefer to vacation and have little contact with the locals or to explore beyond their comfort zone. This model is a tool to help understand tourists and their needs. There are tourists who may not feel the need to be involved but Katutura tourism is suitable for those who do.
Common Problems with Third World Tourism
Although tourism can be economically beneficial in most cases, there are potential hazards that can result from mismanaging the industries development.
Harrison has stated that social and cultural effects often cause controversy and resentment of the locals towards the tourists (Harrison, 1992). For example,
Opportunities for Tourism in the Western Suburbs 13 according to Brohman (1996), locals may feel that the economic benefits of tourism might not outweigh the social and cultural losses. These are concerns of locals, but not always a priority of the tour companies who wish to profit from tourism. Robert
K. Hitchcock wrote that private tour agencies often portray the impacts of tourism as far more benign than they actually are (1997).
The tourism situation in Kenya, the second most popular tourist destination in
Africa, is an example of one of the major negative effects of tourism. After years of promoting their safaris, the vegetation in national parks and game reserves is facing destruction. Some animals such as the cheetah are leaving their natural habitat and relocating to areas that tourists do not visit in large numbers. Rivers are being polluted by sewage, which lowers the attractiveness of the area and harms the ecosystem. Firewood for industry and campers visiting the area comes from chopping down the limited supply of Kenyan trees. As reported recently in the news, this environmental degradation is now forcing Kenya to address the flaws in their tourism industry, as we will discuss later in this chapter. (http://www.csmonitor.com
Received from the World Wide Web on March 22, 2004).
In addition to the environmental degradation in the previous example in
Kenya, an example of a cultural loss may be observed in Fiji‟s tourism efforts. In advertisements promoting Fiji as a tourist destination, the catch phrase “Fiji Islands: the way the world should be” (Harrison, 2001, p.37) is used by the Fiji government.
The tropical islands are being depicted as an exotic getaway with interesting people living the ethnic Fijian culture. The locals are portrayed in the traditional dress of the ethnic Fijians drinking the highly valued kava root, and living under thatched roofs
(Harrison, 2001). Harrison (2001) has pointed out that forty-four percent of the population of the Fiji Islands is of East Indian origin, which rarely appears in the
Opportunities for Tourism in the Western Suburbs 14 promotional literature published by Fiji Visitors‟ Bureau; and more interestingly, that houses of traditional thatch are highly unusual in Fiji‟s populated areas. This shows the promotion of tourism falsely portraying the culture of the real Fiji in order to attract more people to the destination. This is an undesirable effect of tourism promotion that takes away from the culture of the community. The idea is to attract tourists to the real culture, show them the real culture, and impact the tourist in a positive manner.
In addition to the cultural changes and environmental changes, the socioeconomics of tourism are in conflict. In extremely poor nations, it is common for the locals to sacrifice their values and dignity in the pursuit of the money that tourists bring. Forfeiting some of these original cultural qualities leads the locals to become dependant on the wealthy visitors. Because of these limiting factors,
“alternative tourism” has been offered as a remedy (Chambers, 1997).
Alternative Tourism and Ecotourism
Mainstream tourism is the traveling to well-known destinations to see the famous sights and experience luxury. An example of mainstream or mass tourism is a family trip from one country to a well known destination of either their own country or another. Sossusvlei is a very well known destination in Namibia because it has the highest moving dunes in the world. The Sossusvlei Lodge or Sossusvlei campsite would be the place where a family or group of travelers would stay overnight because they heard about the destination previously. Another popular mainstream tourism destination is Swakopmond. This ocean-side town with its white beaches and classy shops is very organized to receive tourists from around Namibia and elsewhere.
These trips are taken to areas that receive large numbers of tourists each year and are prepared for mainstream tourism. In remote areas with lack of human resources,
Opportunities for Tourism in the Western Suburbs 15 infrastructure, or attractiveness, mainstream tourism is not ideal to the community and often has negative effects.
Alternative tourism is quite different; it consists of forms of tourism that maintain the natural, social and community values as well as promoting interaction between the tourists and the locals to result in an enjoyable and worthwhile experience (Smith and Eadington, 1992). The locals take part in the tourism activities and planning, so they educate their guests about their way of life and get to show their national pride, as well as reap the economic benefits of the travelers (Chambers,
1997). Although some might think that an extremely poor nation would not be attractive or even considered as tourist destination, studies by Smith and Eadington as well as other scientists and development planners have concluded that the “poorer the nation” and the “more remote the population, the greater the impacts” of alternative tourism (Chambers, 1997 and Smith and Eadington, 1992). An area such as Katutura is a prime alternative tourism location, because it is largely unknown, and it is rich in culture and history.
In the example regarding land degradation in Kenya, such an alternative form of tourism was taken. With the clear view that the environment could not sustain much more, in 2002 ecotourism was examined as a possible solution. Ecotourism is nature and culture based tourism; the environment is protected and the local communities are respected and involved. The creation and growth of ecotourism also uses methods of sustainable development. This method of development works in harmony with the environment and all the consumable resources involved with the development, and makes the effort to preserve and perpetuate the resources utilized for development. In Kenya, mass tourism was clearly hurting the environment and community, as it does in many areas; countries are looking towards alternative
Opportunities for Tourism in the Western Suburbs 16 tourism or ecotourism as a possible solution (http://www.csmonitor.com).
In The City of Windhoek‟s Public Guide to Local Economic Development
Strategy (2002), the vision beyond 2002 was stated as: “We commit ourselves to make the City of Windhoek a vibrant, economic and technological centre of excellence in Africa in order to enhance the quality of life of all our people.” The mayor of Windhoek, Matheus Shikongo, stressed that the city works for the community and that development will reach all of its constituents, while recognizing and honoring the widespread diversity. With its unique culture, the City of Windhoek believes itself and, specifically, the suburb of Katutura, is a prime destination where one can promote alternative tourism. Alternative tourism is a possible way to help the suburb of Katutura boost its economy while maintaining their cultural history, provided the proper plan is put into place.
Tourist/Host Relations
The Worcester Polytechnic Institute‟s project group that worked with the City of Windhoek‟s Tourism Division in 2003 reported from their interviews and observations in Katutura that the tourists were interested in more face-to-face interaction with the locals to enrich their experience rather than driving around in a van hearing one person recite the history of the country (Rennell, Toledo & Vincent,
2003). A positive tourism experience results in a greater inclination not only to purchase the crafts and souvenirs, but also to return in the future or possibly recommend the destination to others.
Interactive tourism that immerses the tourist in the culture of the destination follows Stephen L. J. Smith‟s description of the tourism product. Not only the facility and service is necessary to satisfy the tourist, but the hospitality and sense of involvement holds the same level of importance (1994). Katutura as a tourist
Opportunities for Tourism in the Western Suburbs 17 destination would benefit from improving the sense of involvement aspect of Smith‟s
Tourism Product by increasing the level of interaction between the locals and tourists, according to the results of Rennell, Toledo, and Vincent (2003). The suburb would then have a more complete and functional tourism product.
Community-Based Tourism Planning
In order to prevent the loss of cultural significance and formation of local resentment, the Ministry of Environment and Tourism‟s policy document on
Community-Based Tourism Development declared that the locals should be involved in the planning of tourist activities and the building and developing of new enterprises. Community-based tourism is meant to promote development as well as conservation of resources and culture (Ashley, 1995). Brohman (1996) suggests that developing nations need a planned tourism development plan that minimizes the costs, maximizes the benefits, and preserves the culture of the communities. By encouraging the locals not to trade quality of life and social identity for economic growth, one can reduce and minimize the possible negative social and cultural impacts of tourism (Brohman, 1996). It is important to allow for economic growth without threatening quality of life.
In Indonesia, the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) and
World Tourism Organization (WTO) worked together to promote community-based tourism. WTO hired an experienced consultant to determine the potential for village tourism; the consultant reported that most of the villagers were unaware of the importance of their heritage and natural and cultural resources. He also reported that the public facilities were less than acceptable to tourists. He proposed a plan of action to educate the villagers about community-based tourism to increase their standard of living. The efforts are working, and are currently in the process of being
Opportunities for Tourism in the Western Suburbs 18 implemented. (http://www.world- tourism.org/regional/east_asia_&_pacific/PDF/Community- based%20tourism%20Indonesia.pdf Received from the World Wide Web on March
23rd, 2004).
Local Economic Development (LED) is an action being taken by the City of
Windhoek to improve the quality of life of Windhoekers by increasing employment and local business opportunities. Economic competitiveness and the social well-being of Windhoekers are in review; a strategy has been set for the locals to personally take action to develop the areas they inhabit. The City of Windhoek is aware of the implications globalization and internationalization of trade and commerce possess, and are therefore planning LED to develop the potential of the community (Local
Economic Development, 2002). The goal of LED is to involve the local people in decisions regarding their own economic futures, including job creation, local economy levels, cultural preservation, cooperation among sectors, and economic development processes. LED is Windhoek‟s implementation The City of Windhoek would like to see economic progress reach the Western suburbs such as Katutura.
Katutura in the Scope of Tourism
Katutura is of rich historical significance and has therefore the ability to draw tourists. Any who wish to view the remnants of the apartheid era can do so in
Katutura; it is common knowledge in Windhoek that the various ethnic groups are still nearly as geographically segregated in Katutura as they were during South
Africa‟s apartheid laws. This is an asset to be considered when evaluating the tourism value of the suburb.
The City of Windhoek is seeking to organize the historical resources of the area through the Katutura Heritage Route (KHR). This route is an important project
Opportunities for Tourism in the Western Suburbs 19 for the Tourism Division of the Department of Economic Development, Tourism, and
Recreation, but it is only in its beginning stages. Ms. Brenda Ng‟andu, a graduate of
University of Namibia who completed her thesis on tourism in Katutura, conceived this aspect of the Black Empowerment Programme. The path for this trail goes through the Old Location and Katutura, showing off the old buildings and introducing visitors to the people and their history. After this, the path goes through some of the open markets, providing tourists with an opportunity to buy local food or wares
(www.windhoekcc.org.na/default.aspx?page=84 Received from the World Wide Web on March 23rd, 2004). The exact route has not yet been established and the city is willing to organize it to highlight positive aspects and businesses of the suburb.
In Ng‟andu‟s thesis (2001), she states the necessity to bring income into the community by empowering people with marketable skills. By touring through
Katutura, tourists will be inclined to spend money if there are wares to purchase and things to see. This development can be a chance to employ more residents and thus increase the level of income for the people of Katutura. The project group from
Worcester Polytechnic Institute in 2003 began the process of implementing the project and identifying what would be most beneficial.
Businesses in Katutura of Possible Tourist Interest
A major concern of the city in regards to the KHR is the lack of infrastructure surrounding the Route. The city is concerned that unless the area is ready for tourists to visit that they will only be disappointed with their excursion. To deal with this, the city wants to develop locally owned businesses.
A large concern to the City of Windhoek and the population of Katutura is the status and employment of the women of Katutura. The population of women is willing to work but finds little opportunity. In local cultures, the woman is often
Opportunities for Tourism in the Western Suburbs 20 responsible for making sure that the children are fed and educated. This becomes especially difficult with the high unemployment rate; there are also women who are ill or handicapped who are unable to find conventional employment.
In order to provide a means for these unemployed and handicapped women to make a living, a program called Penduka was formed. In the Oshiwambo and Herero languages, Penduka means “wake up”. This is a call to the women of Namibia to become more aware and to take more control over the direction of their lives. The program employs five hundred women in various locations throughout Namibia, approximately thirty in the city of Windhoek, in various crafts and needlework. The crafts include baskets, bedding, embroidery, jewelry, as well as bags. The skills and income provided by this co-op allow the women to support their families and improve their standard of living, as previously these women have been unemployed. One additional manner in which Penduka helps improve the economic well being of the women is to give priority to those who are disabled or are living with tuberculosis or
HIV, illnesses which have the potential to ruin one‟s employment opportunities.
Relevant to this project is the marketability of these crafts. Not only are the crafts available for purchase at the Penduka craftshop, but visitors are also invited to view the women working in the workshop. This allows the tourist to look into the process behind the business. Because Penduka is located at the Goreangab Dam, visitors drive through severely disadvantaged areas of Katutura before arriving at the business. The women also have a small restaurant and a meeting hall. Penduka is one of the more developed businesses in Katutura, and can be used as an example to develop other similar businesses (http://www.universal.nl.users.penduka
Retrievedfrom the World Wide Web on February 2nd, 2004). The shop is visited by many tours and is considered a success story.
Opportunities for Tourism in the Western Suburbs 21
One of the most intriguing and tourist-oriented segments of Penduka‟s project is the village. This village is a tourist attraction which invites tourists to enter the lives of the local people and experience another culture. There are thirteen main ethnic groups in Namibia, and most of them are contained within the limits of
Katutura. Though some of the groups are related, each has its own special character, which can be a tremendous draw to foreigners who may not be used to such ethnic diversity, especially so different from their own Western lives. The “Penduka ladies” give tours through a traditional village with examples of huts from eight of the cultural groups (http://www.universal.nl/users/penduka/ Retrieved from the World
Wide Web on February 2nd 2004). By charging admission, these women are able to help support themselves and bring more money into the local economy.
Another business of potential interest to tourists and also beneficial to locals is
Ôasa Taradi. Ôasa Taradi means “busy women” in Nama and signifies the group‟s purpose of employing hardworking single mothers in crafts such as needlework and sewing. Originally, this organization was begun as part of the Red Cross‟s efforts in the area, but then the organization separated from the Red Cross, and Ôasa Taradi set out on its own. The women support their families by working on needlework crafts at home which they then bring back to the shop for payment (www.Ôasataradi.com
Retrieved from the World Wide Web on February 2nd, 2004). This business is another that allows tourists to look into the lives of the inhabitants of Katutura.
Aid To Artisans
One problem facing both Otjikaendu Den and Ôasa Taradi is the difficulty in developing a business that makes just enough to make ends meet. One organization, which has been helpful in aiding other small businesses and organizations around the world, is Aid to Artisans.
Opportunities for Tourism in the Western Suburbs 22
Aid to Artisans (ATA) in their own words is “a nonprofit organization [that] offers practical assistance to artisan groups world wide, working in partnerships to foster artistic traditions, cultural vitality, improved livelihoods, and community well- being” (Giorgio, 2002, p.2). ATA works primarily in developing nations with artisans who might not have access to large markets, business organization, or trade skills.
Among other things, ATA gives out thousands of dollars in grants and organizes an annual workshop in New York. The workshop in New York City is designed to help artisans to improve their business practices and help the artisans increase the quality of their goods. ATA is a very wellconnected organization that can help get the wares of a small, unknown artisan into the global market. ATA also takes extra time to impress upon its artisan pupils the importance of sustainable development. A small grant from the city of Windhoek could, for example, pay for one of the women of
Ôasa Taradi to attend the New York City workshop. The woman could then return to
Katutura with more business knowledge to share with her co-workers.
Success Stories
Although the social, cultural, and economic implications of bringing tourism into an underdeveloped nation can overwhelm the local people and environment, success in this goal has been widespread over the past several years. Kenya, The
Dominican Republic, Swaziland, and other less developed nations have become more popular tourist destinations. As a result, the inhabitants of these countries can now benefit from the jobs created by the tourism industry. These nations may serve as an example to other underdeveloped nations to prove that increasing tourism is possible and also profitable.
The island of The Dominican Republic is a Caribbean destination that is inhabited by economically disadvantaged people. In respect to the other Caribbean
Opportunities for Tourism in the Western Suburbs 23 islands, The Dominican Republic was the last to implement a successful tourist industry. They started by appointing a leader to direct tourism in its development to form and implement an infrastructure to begin their development. The Dominican
Republic therefore created both a slogan, “Come to the land that Columbus loved”, and laws that promoted the infrastructure of the tourism industry. Since the implementation of these tools, the number of tourists traveling to The Dominican
Republic and the foreign revenue derived from tourism has increased significantly, demonstrating the effectiveness of the tools (Freitag, 1994, p.540).
A study, funded by the British Council in 1994, was conducted on the South
African country of Swaziland. The fieldwork consisted of informal interviews of subjects who were not randomly selected, structured questionnaires, observation, and archival research to study the effects of tourism as evidence of development. Since
Swaziland considered tourism to be a potentially rich industry, they placed it high on the agenda and hired consultants to conduct a study on the industry. From 1972-1990, the total number of tourists visiting Swaziland tripled, showing evidence of the success from the research and efforts to increase the tourism industry (Harrison,
1995).
The Development of Small Businesses
In better equipping a community for tourists, there is an obvious need for businesses to accommodate the tourists. Petrof (2001) believes that the addition of small businesses in a community contributes strategically to its structure because the businesses directly utilize the area‟s resources and directly affect the local economy.
This is also helpful to areas with low employment because it provides the community with more job opportunities. It is difficult to notice any dramatic changes in economic development in the short run while setting up new businesses, but over a
Opportunities for Tourism in the Western Suburbs 24 period of time it is possible to observe the success. Petrof also suggests that with careful thought, planning, and concentration on the promotion of local cultural values and regional interests, it is possible to set up a strong infrastructure for a community to utilize in their efforts to develop the tourism industry.
Petrof (2001) points out that in most underdeveloped nations the government is needed in assisting small businesses in starting up. The government is often in a stronger position to loan money for startup capital than the private sector is to begin.
If the government of the nation is in favor of small businesses to boost economic development, the help they give will be beneficial (Petrof, 2001). In Bangladesh, an under-supported business sector was not reaping the benefits of small and medium sized enterprises, and therefore was not supplying jobs or reducing poverty in the area
(Donors, 2002). In 2002, the South Asia Enterprise Development Facility (SEDF) gave aid to the Bangladesh people. They started with a “strategy meeting” where several groups interested in funding small and medium sized enterprises in
Bangladesh met to discuss possible options and outcomes. The goal of this program was to decrease the level of poverty in the area. This was accomplished through improvement of the status of small and medium enterprises (SMEs) through utilization of any prosperity or strengths already existent in the businesses (Donors
2002).
The same sort of movement took place in 2003 in the Philippines. The Asian
Development Bank (ADB) granted US$400,000 to accelerate financing of small and medium sized enterprises. In the Philippines, as of 2003, SMEs supplied two thirds of the jobs but needed assistance; the ADB, therefore, aims to supply more financing for these enterprises to lift the community out of poverty in the future (Asian
Development Bank, 2003).
Opportunities for Tourism in the Western Suburbs 25
In 1997, the President of Namibia, Dr. Sam Nujoma launched a national policy regarding small business development with the aim to improve the under- developed small business sector to be a more prominent sector of the economy
(http://www.mti.gov.na/ Retrieved from the World Wide Web on March 25th, 2004).
The Government in Namibia plans to aid small and medium sized enterprises in an effort to develop a more sophisticated and robust economy. Since the Government of
Namibia and the City of Windhoek‟s Tourism Division has the same goals of aiding developing businesses, there is a promising future for the businesses and economy of
Windhoek.
Opportunities for Tourism in the Western Suburbs 26
Chapter 3: Methodology
The goal of this project was to prepare the suburb of Katutura for tourism in order for it to share in the benefits that tourism can bring to developing nations. In order to prepare this area for an increased volume of tourists, there must be successful and attractive businesses which tourists find interesting. The City of Windhoek has identified two developing businesses that could attract tourists: Otjikaendu Den, affectionately known as Mama Melba‟s, and Ôasa Taradi. To achieve our goal, these businesses must become more developed and successful, as tourists are more likely to visit and possibly spend money at successful businesses rather than at disorganized or unappealing ones.
Table 1: Objectives and Methods
Objectives to Accomplish Goal Methods to Accomplish Objective
Objective 1: To analyze the strengths and - Took tours weaknesses of each business in regards to - Conducted interviews and tourism community meetings - Did archival research Objective 2: To form strategies to benefit - Took tours the businesses and determine the social - Conducted interviews and and financial implications of the strategic community meetings developments - Did archival research Objective 3: To effectively implement - Organized data from interviews the strategic developments and test our and other research recommendations - PERT - Initiated a pilot tour - Administered a survey
Table 1. Objectives and Methods Before we could work specifically with addressing our goal, we first had to familiarize ourselves with the tourism industry in Katutura. After we gained an understanding of the tourism environment, we were able to begin our detailed
Opportunities for Tourism in the Western Suburbs 27 research to fulfill our goal. The first objective to accomplish our goal was to analyze the strengths and weaknesses surrounding tourism based development for both the businesses as well as the communities they dwell in. Based upon the results of the first objective, the second objective formulated strategies to maximize the tourism potential of the businesses. These strategies at the same time maximized the possible advantages for the community with respect to any changes made to the business they contain. In order to satisfy those objectives, we took tours, conducted interviews and community meetings, and did archival research.
The third objective was to take the data from the first two objectives to construct a comprehensive business plan for each of the businesses and to determine the feasibility of each business plan. This consisted of organizing the collected data and devising the most strategic way to develop each business, as well as finding out the financial obligations involved. Once we implemented the strategic plans, we tested our recommendations by organizing a pilot tour and analyzing the results of surveys we administered to the pilot group.
In order to fully appreciate Ôasa Taradi and Otjikaendu Den as tourist destinations and make recommendations, it was imperative to first see the city of
Windhoek and specifically the suburb of Katutura through the eyes of a tourist. It was also necessary to understand the way the tourism industry operates in Katutura, because all of our latter research feeds into the development of tourism in this area.
This was accomplished by taking multiple tours of Windhoek and specifically the
Katutura area with as many agencies and tour guides as possible. The first tour was taken with Manfred !Gaeb, who works with the City of Windhoek‟s Tourism Division and oversees all operations dealing with tourism in the city. During this tour, we were given historical information and also introduced to owners of the two businesses.
Opportunities for Tourism in the Western Suburbs 28
After our preliminary tour, we took tours with guides who work with !Gaeb and the Tourism Division, as well as independent tour companies. We went on tours with Katina Garises of Victory Women‟s Movement, Mandla Karongee of Face to
Face Tours, Ephraim of The Cardboard Box, and Kurt Schlenther of Sense of Africa.
The guides did not follow exactly the same route and did not explain the same landmarks; we therefore gained different perspectives from each. We took the tours that the average tourist would be taking in order to gain insight into their point of view.
In addition to taking the tours, we also held informal interviews with the tour guides. We interviewed Kurt Schlenther about his history with tourism and social implications of tourism. Katrina Garises of Victory Women‟s Movement introduced us to Victory Women‟s Cultural Group, and we spoke in depth with her about the possibility of the cultural group creating a partnership with Melba Tjahere.
In connection to the cultural group, we determined the need to investigate other cultural groups to create a set of recommendations for Victory Women‟s
Cultural Group. We had been informed that the Daweb Junior Secondary School‟s cultural group was the only successful establishment in the whole town of Maltahöhe and that it would be worthwhile to view their performance. We watched them perform, and spoke with their coach. We also viewed a short presentation by
KAYEC, at the Katutura Youth Enterprises Center to gain more ideas to improve upon Victory Women‟s current act. Moreover, we observed Victory Women‟s performance on three separate occasions, where we were able to identify specific improvements that would be helpful to their success. These improvements dealt with presentation and attitude, sharpness and originality, and punctuality. This helped us to form recommendations so Victory Women‟s Cultural Group would be prepared for
Opportunities for Tourism in the Western Suburbs 29 the commitment and responsibility to Otjikaendu Den‟s partnership opportunity.
To create a set of recommendations for the business structures of Otjikaendu
Den and Ôasa Taradi, we conducted a series of interviews with the owners of the respective establishments. In the first set of interviews, we gained knowledge of the history of each business. In the second round of interviews, we used the information gathered from the first set of questions to create specific questions that allowed us to decide what sort of improvements must be made in preparation for tourism. See interview transcripts in Appendix B for specific questions and responses.
In an effort to triangulate our data, we also conducted two informal community meetings with ten of the twenty women of Ôasa Taradi, and the fourteen employees of Mama Melba‟s. This in turn provided us with insight into the perspectives of all of the people directly involved with each of the businesses. We became more acquainted with their available resources, problems they had encountered, things that work well, and things that need improvement. We initiated conversation by prompting them to tell us all about their facility and then to discuss their opinions on how to improve to increase profit. We encouraged them to formulate solutions on their own simply because they are most likely to follow through with plans of their own design. Again, the goal was to provide us with a better understanding of the needs of each of the businesses. See Appendix C for the community meeting write up.
In addition to the business interviews, we interviewed the neighbors of each business to determine both communities‟ opinions of the establishments near which they live. We spoke with nine households located in close proximity to Ôasa Taradi and eleven households near to Otjikaendu Den. We broke into three groups, each having one of us and two translators from the Polytechnic of Namibia. These
Opportunities for Tourism in the Western Suburbs 30 interviews were structured, based on an eleven question survey which we had previously developed. See Appendix D for the questions and responses. The responses gave us an insight into the social implications of the businesses‟ developments for the communities in which they dwell. We determined the neighbors‟ opinions of tourism and the possible benefits that could result from the business developments.
Archival research also played a valuable role in the development of our recommendations. Using data that collected by the Tourism Division of the
Department of Economic Development, Tourism, and Recreation, we were able to acquire accurate and relevant data directly pertaining to our study. This data included
Brenda Ng‟andu‟s thesis on the Katutura Heritage Route and the 2003 WPI IQP
Team‟s results from interviews in Katutura. By consulting these resources, we were able to offer greater validity to our results as well as stronger recommendations.
Simple observation was one of the least complicated while at the same time most involved methods we used. A significant portion of the recommendations we made came from observations we made on different tours and interviews.
Tying in the collected data with the resources of our liaison, we were able to form recommendations. Such resources of the liaison were contacts with architects and people experienced in the field of developing tourism. Joe‟s Beer Garden was called to acquire the contact of J&L Thatching Company, who was responsible for
Joe‟s traditional thatched roofs that Mama Melba is interested in. The figures we received were considered critical to our business plan formulation. Also, we investigated display products at Retief Sales and EasyFit Cupboards for Ôasa Taradi‟s store front. This was to gather price quotes for the future. See Appendix G and H for price quotes.
Opportunities for Tourism in the Western Suburbs 31
The third objective was to construct strategic plans for each of the businesses as well as determine the feasibility of our recommendations. To do this, we performed an internal and external analysis of the business environment using a technique called
SWOT, which stands for Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities, and Threats (Cooper,
1998). This technique was invaluable to understanding and organizing the different factors and various forces that affected the businesses. A number of strategies were constructed and displayed in a SWOT matrix.
Finally, a Program Evaluation and Review Technique (PERT) was used to construct strategic plans that could be implemented immediately (Hillier & Hillier,
2001). In order to follow the strategies, we made a list of the activities that needed to be completed to reach the final goal of promoting growth in the business. Along with each activity, we also assessed the estimated duration and estimated cost. Using
Microsoft Project, we were able to produce a project network map that illustrated each suggested strategic plan.
Once the recommendations were displayed as a strategic plan for each business, we implemented these strategies at each business. We proposed a new tour idea in order to combat the major threats to our project, and initiated a pilot tour to test our recommendations and determine the feasibility of our proposal. We then administered a survey to the tourists after the tour was finished in order to provide us with feedback on the practicality of the tour. These results were used by the City of
Windhoek‟s Department of Economic Development, Tourism and Recreation to assess the possibility of creating a tour package.
Opportunities for Tourism in the Western Suburbs 32
Chapter 4: Data and Results
During our research it became obvious that our data and results are very closely tied to our strategies for each of the businesses. Because they are so intertwined, we will discuss both data and strategies in this chapter. Then in “Chapter
5: Recommendations,” we will review and summarize our recommendations for the businesses.
Ôasa Taradi
Business Investigation
The first goal of our business investigation was to determine how Ôasa Taradi was established and how the business was ran. The Red Cross established a program in Windhoek in 1989 to educate the poor women and to teach them a trade that they could use to support their families. The Red Cross taught these women how to sew and embroider. In 1993, a group of women branched off to form Ôasa Taradi. These women were led by Mrs. Jutta Rohwer who still serves to provide them with guidance and runs the business. These women brought with them the education obtained during their time spent with the Red Cross.
These women from the Red Cross formed the base for the business.
Afterwards, more women became interested in the co-op, having heard about it mostly by word of mouth. The co-op now is composed of approximately twenty women who all live in Katutura. They are ethnically mixed, but with a Damara majority.
Currently, the business runs by processing orders from Germany which come primarily from their German website. The original German women, wives of teachers working in Windhoek, have helped the group to become more well known in
Germany. Orders are taken by Mrs. Jutta Rohwer, who then distributes the pieces
Opportunities for Tourism in the Western Suburbs 33 evenly between the women. All but three of the women are employed to embroider in their own homes. The remaining three work in the house on sewing machines to achieve the finished product.
Business Organization
Payment is highly organized within Ôasa Taradi. The assignments are given out to the women for the coming week on Mondays and the group reconvenes Fridays to hand in what they have finished. The women are paid on a piece by piece basis, if they do not finish what they were given, they do not get paid for those pieces. There are also product policies to keep standards high. Each piece is inspected when it comes in for quality and cleanliness. If the piece is not well done, it is returned and the woman is given a chance to redo it and then receive payment. If, after the second attempt, the piece is still not up to standards, the woman not only is not paid, but must pay for the material wasted.
In addition to their website, Ôasa Taradi also has a table in the Namibia Craft
Centre downtown. Small amounts of business also occur when Mrs. Jutta Rohwer occasionally includes the business in her tours. The last time she brought a tour to
Ôasa Taradi was in November of 2003. Rohwer is involved in community service in
Windhoek and gathers interest through her travels. When there is enough interest, she takes people though Katutura in buses to visit Ôasa Taradi. These tours are very few but profitable to the women of Ôasa Taradi. The last time Rohwer brought a tour through, the business sold N$3000 in a half an hour.
The women say that they are generally prepared for an increased tour volume.
During our interview, one of the concerns was a suitable method to display their goods; previously, the current storefront served as a workroom. Stock cloth was everywhere, and there was nowhere to display the products. The primary request of
Opportunities for Tourism in the Western Suburbs 34 the women was an organized storefront in which they could present their goods and greet customers when they visit. By being able to sell their products from the house, they could avoid some of the drawbacks and costs of selling at the craft center. They were confident that a well stocked store front would attract more people to the business and generate sales.
They already have a professional and attractive sign that has been there for the past five years and is noticeable from the street. The business is open from half past seven to half past four; Selma is the caretaker and is always there, however, so she can assist people at nearly any reasonable hour.
The women were also confident in their ability to handle an increased demand for their products. They said that they have enough women to produce the necessary products already and that these women would merely put in more hours and labor to meet the increased need. They did not seem interested in hiring more women as they say that they do not have enough work to keep all of the women busy and many are on “stand by” waiting for work. If there is more work to be done then each woman will be assigned more work to do, and more women that are on “stand by” can be given work.
Along with an increase in demand, there comes a possibility of earning more from a lower unit price. By producing more and lowering the cost of each item to sell, the women would earn more.
Expanding Education
Other desires that the women harbored related to the demographics of the tourists. They commented, and !Gaeb confirmed, that the majority of the tourists are
German. We learned that the business is primarily composed of Damaras, with a couple Herero women. They speak Afrikaans in addition to their native tongue, as
Opportunities for Tourism in the Western Suburbs 35 well as a little English. Therefore, the women could benefit from being able to take classes in German so that they could converse with them in their native tongue.
The ladies also expressed an interest in expanding the diversity of the products they produce. They already have a designer that comes each year to teach new designs and techniques, but each woman is only educated in one area of design.
There are women who only do the embroidery and women who do the sewing (there are only two sewing machines at Ôasa Taradi). The women would like to be able to cut material, design the pattern, stitch with skill, and create a finished product independently. They are interested in taking classes to acquire these skills if such education were to be made available. They feel that diversifying their skills could lead to a more flexible business.
In addition to language and art classes, business classes could be helpful as well. In order to understand the concept of price elasticity and supply/demand trends, the women could take classes in basic business concepts. This would help them become more independent and aware of the significance of their prices.
Expansion and Increased Demand
In regards to expansion, the women are open to any ideas that could help.
They are interested in expanding the building itself, including more work space to accommodate all the women. Presently, the women come on Monday mornings to pick up material for the week. Then they work at their own homes during the week, creating the products for the week and returning finished products on Friday afternoon. If there was enough work space in the house to have all the women working together, the business would be much more organized and productive.
There was also mention of ablution facilities that would be necessary if more tourists were to come. This is a minor concern that should be addressed in the future
Opportunities for Tourism in the Western Suburbs 36 when there is a more promising tourist volume.
When we inquired about time and money spent on each product, it was difficult to distinguish among the different products. Some women are responsible for making ten towels in one week, and others are responsible for making two pillow cases with more intricate designs. The picture below consists of a pillow case with four animal embroideries that would take a woman an entire day to complete. This was brought in during the community meeting that Friday to be sewn and shipped.
Figure 2. Ôasa Taradi Pillow Case – Product takes approximately one day to complete, with
other products taking shorter or longer depending on size and complexity.
When we discussed the issue of increasing demand, the women agreed to the possibility of hiring more women. Currently, they have women that come by interested in work but there are not enough product orders to warrant employment of extra women. They do teach these women the skills so that when they need more women to supply products, they will be prepared. The women currently employed by
Ôasa Taradi are very determined and prepared to work extra hours and create extra products if the demand increased with tourist increase. Hiring extra women would
Opportunities for Tourism in the Western Suburbs 37 only be possible after business has increased substantially. Also, a concern for security was expressed. If they had money to hire, they would be interested in employing a security guard because this Damara neighborhood apparently has a high crime rate.
As a result of their success with Germany, we believe that other countries like the United States could be interested in Ôasa Taradi‟s products. They currently operate through Germany because there are so many Germans in Namibia so the transactions are regular. The American market, as well as that of other European nations, could potentially be fruitful to Ôasa Taradi.
The women of Ôasa Taradi have also looked into making school uniforms for local children. This is an example of their exploring other markets. They could also design and create uniforms for businesses.
Neighboring Household Interviews
Our results of the neighboring household interviews show that nobody felt negatively about the business, nor were they concerned with the idea of the business expanding. Four of the people interviewed had noticed no influence of Ôasa Taradi on the neighborhood, two saw a positive influence, and two mentioned using the business personally as a tailor shop for general sewing services. Those who thought that it was positive agreed that it did help to bring more money into the neighborhood and also commented that it taught the children to not be idle because the ladies of
Ôasa Taradi are “busy women.” Figure 3 displays the responses from the neighbors of Ôasa Taradi in regards to the influence of the business.
Opportunities for Tourism in the Western Suburbs 38
Influence of Oasa Taradi as Indicated by Neighbors
No Influence 1 Good Influence 2 4 Provides Local Services 2 Other
Figure 3. Influence of Ôasa Taradi as Indicated by Neighbors The neighbors did not seem familiar with the idea of tourists utilizing the business, perhaps because it has not been a regular tour stop previously. They were more familiar with the work that the women were available to do for other members of the community such as mending or stitching for those without the time or skill.
They do not perceive that conflicts will arise with an increased tourist volume.
People felt that an increased tourist flow could stimulate more growth in the community. One woman, a kindergarten teacher, felt that perhaps the tourists would donate to the kindergarten and if not, then even just the exposure to foreigners would be beneficial to the children.
Overall, no one mentioned negative issues with the business as a whole, though one woman did have an altercation with one of the women employed by Ôasa
Taradi. This woman admitted that it was a personal problem and was not a reflection on the business as a whole.
With the data collected from the interviews, we could then analyze the relationship between the businesses and their environments. We performed a SWOT analysis, which outlined each business‟s strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and
Opportunities for Tourism in the Western Suburbs 39
threats (See Appendix B). By evaluating each characteristic, we created a matrix
which crossed each characteristic and developed strategies to aid the businesses.
Strengths-Weaknesses-Opportunities-Threats (SWOT)
This section will show the SWOT analysis, SWOT matrix, and strategic
suggestions for each business.
Strengths Weaknesses -Is composed of 20 motivated women -Has only one toilet working to support their children -Has very little parking space -Produces beautiful products (ex. pencil -Sells expensive products bags, pillow cases, oven mits, tablecloths) -Has internal disagreements -Occupies a nice house, back porch, clean about the payment for different storefront, 2 sewing machines jobs -Has plenty of materials -Has a display room, but it is -Has a strong leader, Mrs. Jutta Rohwer, currently very bare who is in charge of everything and very open with her employees -Has an organized pay structure -Has a website for business and orders
Opportunities S-O strategies W-O strategies -Many orders come from -Purchase material to visually display the -Make a system that requires a Germany women‟s needlework in their storefront few extra pieces a week to -They have space at the craft -Hire more women to make more contribute to their stock center and are able to sell products and create more jobs for the -Find a construction company online community that can give us quotes for how -Mrs. Jutta Rowher -Make more products at home during the much more toilets would be occasionally brings a large week to keep in stock instead of just -Seek education for women tour by, which generates making to fill orders willing to learn new needlework income techniques and skills -A more attractive storefront -Restructure the payment could bring more tourists practices, so women can get -Neighbors are supportive, more pay if they can acquire and some want to learn how to use more skills or techniques embroider when more tourists - Construct more toilets come -The US market could be interested if website were in English Threats S-T strategies W-T strategies -Neighbors admitted they -Crime protection (security, fencing, -Evaluate prices, improve were in a bad area with high lighting) quality crime rates by hiring locals -Tourists might think the -Women can take classes in German prices are too high -Women and tourists speak different languages Table 2. SWOT Matrix for Ôasa Taradi
Opportunities for Tourism in the Western Suburbs 40
Implementation
There are several useful strategies developed from the SWOT Matrix. Starting with the S-O Strategies, the development of the storefront and production of inventory was the most dramatic and important improvement needed, as it is central to the attraction of tourists. Ôasa Taradi has beautiful needlework products that tourists could buy if they were brought to the store. Previously the storefront was a white room with cupboards and a working table in the center. The strategy was therefore to utilize the attractive products to decorate the storeroom.
Since the store front was identified as the first step to improving their business, we prioritized and helped them create an attractive display room. We visited design wholesalers like Retief Sales and EasyFit Kitchen to research prices for display techniques, but found them all to be too expensive. Considering our budget, we purchased hooks and tea cups and string with an idea to give them just enough to get them started. Below are pictures from our progress.
Opportunities for Tourism in the Western Suburbs 41
Figure 4. .Progess- Table Settings and Napkins
Figure 5. Progress- Hanging Displays
Opportunities for Tourism in the Western Suburbs 42
Figure 6. Progress- Table Cloth, Pillows, and Bags
Figure 7. Progress- Towel Display
Opportunities for Tourism in the Western Suburbs 43
Figure 8. Progress- Placemat Display Strategic Plans
Another S-O Strategy would be increasing job opportunities by hiring more women to make the products. In Katutura, there are many women who are trying to feed their families and send their children to school. Ôasa Taradi employs twenty of these women, but there are a lot of women that are still unemployed. The neighbors and workers agreed that if more tourists were to come, they would need to hire more women to make more products and that the community would benefit from this job creation. The extra workers would be able to make more products that could be stored in the main house stock room, creating more goods to be sold in the newly developed storefront. This is also a W-O Strategy because the storefront storage is something Ôasa Taradi was lacking. Another option is to have the current workers produce more without hiring more women to do the work they are capable of doing.
This would be more cost effective way to accomplish the goal of increasing their stock. Since inventory is an integral component of a functioning storefront, these
Opportunities for Tourism in the Western Suburbs 44 options are extremely important to attend to.
Ôasa Taradi also lacks a formal toilet facility for tourists. There exists a toilet outside the house, but any tourist attraction needs to be able to accommodate tourists with a complete set of ablution facilities. This situation could be addressed by acquiring price quotes for such facilities. Presently, however, toilet facilities are only feasible with money from either a grant or a loan. We contacted Pupkewitz
Megabuild and ROCLA Cement to price out wet toilet facilities, cement ablution foundations and structures respectively; the specific pricing information can be found in Appendix D.
An S-T Strategy that takes into account the high crime rate in the neighborhood is the possible employment of a security guard. This would help tourists to become more comfortable with the perceived threat of crime. Also, if a loan were available, a brighter street light or higher fence would be helpful to combat this threat and further put the tourists at ease.
The last strategy associated with Ôasa Taradi‟s business addresses the price of their products. Although some of the locals claimed to purchase some household items from the women of Ôasa Taradi, we viewed the prices as expensive. The high prices do, however, seem to be comparable to similar tourist-oriented crafts in the area. A way to attend to this is to consider selling their products in sets at a reduced price. This could not be done until a full price evaluation has been completed. This evaluation would consist of calculating overhead costs, cost of production, and cost of labour. With these costs, the value of each product could be derived and the least possible amount to sell at could be reached. This would raise the probability of generating sales, because tourists would feel the prices were more reasonable.
On one of our trips to Ôasa Taradi, we were given small squares of homemade
Opportunities for Tourism in the Western Suburbs 45 candy. This fudge-like candy might prove easily salable to tourists. Having small inexpensive goods along with the rest of the products will help people spend a little money; this is especially true with respect to the candy and tourists with small kids.
That candy is something that can be sold with a high markup without damaging its feasibility for sale as it would be inexpensive to produce relative to the reasonable price it can be sold at.
Our specific recommendations for Ôasa Taradi will be discussed in further detail in the following chapter.
Otjikaendu Den
Business Investigation
Through meeting with Melba Tjahere, we learned of the success of her business, Otjikaendu Den. Already there have been many tours stopping through her business, and people from as far away as China have heard of her traditional goats‟ head, coined “Smiley”, and have come to do a documentary on her and her restaurant.
People have also come from Germany, Spain and the U.S. to visit and eat at her restaurant and try the Smiley.
As a result of these visits from tourists, Tjahere feels confident in the ability of her local customers to deal with an increased foreign clientele. She says that the locals and the foreigners presently intermingle politely, so if more foreigners were to visit, she sees no problem.
In regards to an increased volume of tourists, Tjahere mentioned her plans for the improvement and enlargement of her restaurant and facilities. Currently, the capacity of her dining area inside and out is fifty people in total.
Although she is willing to take language classes to improve communication with the foreigners, she believes that there will not be a problem with the language
Opportunities for Tourism in the Western Suburbs 46 because if she has something to communicate to someone, she can get the point across with body language and some limited use of English.
The atmosphere of Otjikaendu Den is bursting with a unique cultural character that is only growing. The friendly ambience of the outside dining area is accompanied by a burlap wall tent covered with corrugated iron with dining tables inside. On warm summer days, Melba Tjahere wets the burlap walls with a hose to cool down the area. This system is shown below.
Figure 9. Otjikaendu Den's "Aircon" System
Employee Concerns
When we asked the employees of Otjikaendu Den for their thoughts about possible problems that they might encounter, and that might need to be addressed in the future through the development process there were a couple of responses. They
Opportunities for Tourism in the Western Suburbs 47 began by telling us that presently there are no problems with crime or delinquent behavior from either clients or neighbors. They did, however, acknowledge the possibility of such negative results developing with the growth of the restaurant.
Currently, they can use both the police as well as 911 Security Company to respond to crime. It was then mentioned that a full time security person might be hired as the need for added security became an issue. One waitress even mentioned that ultimately they would like to construct a nice attractive and secure wall. She did concede, however, that such an addition was not currently financially feasible. In the meantime, the best solution would be simply to double the height of the fence surrounding the perimeter.
After discussing several other factors that could go into the development, we asked the employees to try and outline for us what they felt are the most important improvements that they feel they need in preparation for tourists. First and foremost, they all agreed upon the need for a more sophisticated ablution facility. At the moment, the only toilet is inside the house. Since the whole place was originally designed to be a residential establishment, some of the necessary restaurant infrastructure is lacking. Extended and centralized food storage facilities are also very necessary. Currently, Tjahere‟s house is the only place where food can be stored. A centralized place to store larger „restaurant‟ quantities of food would help improve the organization of the system.
To improve the professionalism of her presentation, it was suggested that
Mama Melba seek a sponsorship from a company that could provide her with glassware. One promising sponsor would be the local corporation of NamBrew.
NamBrew sponsors dozens of businesses already, and owns many of the beverages that Otjikaendu Den already serves. Tjahere could then potentially receive glassware
Opportunities for Tourism in the Western Suburbs 48 for her restaurant, as well as a small discount on the beverages she purchases from them.
The last concern brought to our attention was the possible need for hospitality training for some of the staff. As the business expands and the clientele grows, new staff will require some training to help maintain a high level of service. This is, however, one of the less imminently required preparations for tourists. Presently, service at Mama Melba‟s restaurant is quite good and does not need any immediate attention.
For the most part, the most important improvements are those that help address the shortcomings that Otjikaendu Den has with respect to proper services.
These things include toilets, followed by more organized food storage and a more formal dining area.
Neighboring Household Interviews
We found that all but two of the eleven households interviewed near
Otjikaendu Den told us that they harbored no concerns involved with the expansion of the business, many often commenting that Tjahere should take advantage of any chance she has to expand.
The neighbors were able to identify several benefits to the expansion of the business. Four of the neighbors listed the greater opportunity for jobs as a benefit of the expansion of the business, with one woman saying that due to the employment that the business provides, the neighborhood might possibly lose more than Tjahere if the business shut down. Also mentioned were benefits to Tjahere herself and her family. They mentioned that her business has helped to educate her children. One person, a previous employee, did mention that the wages paid by Tjahere are not high enough and that the employees work odd hours. This is, however, likely to be the
Opportunities for Tourism in the Western Suburbs 49 case with any service job.
The neighbors seemed to be impressed with Melba‟s adept business skills.
There is little crime there and she keeps the clientele under control. Most of the people had no complaints about the business and felt it to be remarkably friendly and welcoming compared to local shebeens. Only four complained about noise and many people were impressed by how little noise there is, or commented that the music only gets loud at the end of the month. Table 1 indicates the responses from the households in proximity to Otjikaendu Den.
Neighborhood Complaints of Otjikaendu Den
Neighbor Interviews (n=11 people) Yes No Complaints about Noise 4 7 Employment Benefits 4 7 Bathroom Problems 2 9 Parking Problem 1 10 Table 3. Otjikaendu Den's Neighboring Household Interview Results There were several suggestions as well as complaints given by the neighbors regarding the business. Some did feel that the music was played too loud or that it was not varied enough to match the interests of the neighborhood. Another problem listed was that Tjahere does not have any outside toilets for her customers; instead they use the toilet inside the house. One of the men commented that his fence had been used as a bathroom facility at times, so he would like to see accessible restrooms available to the diners. Another issue mentioned was a lack of parking near and around the business, which has occasionally caused people to park on the side of the road, blocking the driveways to other homes.
The neighbors were fairly well divided between those who frequent the restaurant and those who do not, with four persons not going at all, three buying meat for their families there, and three going there often. There was one other interviewee
Opportunities for Tourism in the Western Suburbs 50 who was new to the neighborhood and will likely visit the business in the future but who has not yet had the opportunity. Figure 4 displays the neighborhoods response to the inquiry about their involvement with Otjikaendu Den.
Neighborhood use of Otjikaendu Den
Does not go to socialize 1 4 Does not go for social 3 reasons, but buys meat Goes often
Other 3
Figure 10. Neighborhood Use of Otjikaendu Den Everyone interviewed that understood the concept of tourism felt that an increased tourist volume would be beneficial. They acknowledged that, as with any other expansion, it would likely result in more jobs and a greater cash flow through the neighborhood. Many people also felt that it would be good to interact with foreigners; foreigners could also benefit from being exposed to traditional cuisine and locals. Many of the neighbors that did not understand exactly what tourism is; many simply stated that if Otjikaendu Den receives more business, Melba Tjahere will benefit and they would be happy for her.
The issues that the neighboring households reported also corresponded with the information we gathered from the workers of Otjikaendu Den and Melba Tjahere, thus adding to their validity and importance.
Opportunities for Tourism in the Western Suburbs 51
Strengths-Weaknesses-Opportunities-Threats (SWOT)
Strengths Weaknesses -Produces a strong product -May appear unsanitary to -Great reputation tourists because of the -Crime not a problem uncovered meat and flies -Employs people from everywhere different ethnic groups -Only has one toilet in the -Is located on Luxury Hill, house ideal for tours to stop by -Not a formally set up -Has a friendly atmosphere restaurant facility -Has a capacity of 50 -Only holds 50 people at once people, plans to expand to -Has mainly Herero customers fit more at one time who may not socialize -Has a powerful and -Lacks parking spaces ambitious proprietor -Lacks large refrigeration Opportunities S-O strategies W-O strategies -Locals are always interested in dining -Prepare the cultural group -Getting quotes and starting at Melba‟s to perform for tourists at building for food storage to -Customers accept tourists Mama Melba‟s keep meats fly-free -With more business, more employees -Look for a way to get a -Getting quotes to set up more will be needed and the area has lots of lunch tour to go to Mama ablution facilities unemployed people to hire Melba‟s by talking to tour - Price estimates for food -Cardboard Box tour guide is very agencies thatched roof, other interested in including Mama Melbas -Get quotes for construction, security guards, along their tour once she is ready for construction etc. more tourists -Use the great reputation in -Freedomlands Cultural Group may be advertisement on local available to entertain diners radio stations. -Information brochures list Melba‟s -Advertised on radio stations locally Threats S-T strategies W-T strategies -Neighbor attitudes about tourism may -Implement crime -Enclose the outside dining shift protection solutions like room will help to keep flies -Possible crime increase unforeseen by higher fencing, security out, as well as offer some interviews guards, stronger light posts. privacy to larger groups. -Tourists may not be adventurous enough to purchase the goat‟s head -Our personal tours did not stop there or mention Melba at all -Some complaints from neighbors about noise Table 4. SWOT Matrix for Otjikaendu Den
Opportunities for Tourism in the Western Suburbs 52
Implementation
One of the main points of our project with respect to Otjikaendu Den was to prepare it for an increase volume of tourists without stripping her establishment of its cultural charm. In order to do this, we wanted to encourage the formation of a cultural entertainment act to perform during meals or when a tour stopped by. When we proposed this to Otjikaendu Den, Tjahere told us that she had already had Victory
Women‟s Cultural Group perform several times and it had worked successfully. We advised her to invite the cultural group whenever tours were expected; this partnership would then benefit both Otjikaendu Den as well as the cultural group. Tjahere would enjoy a more elaborate tourism product, and the cultural group would be able to make some money and become better known.
Women‟s Victory Movement sponsors this cultural group made up of youths whose only income is comprised of donations for the performances they give. There are several other youth cultural groups in Windhoek that are much more developed than the Victory Women‟s Cultural Group. It is for this reason, however, that the City of Windhoek would like to empower this underdeveloped cultural group and help them to improve their skills. We feel that with some improvements to their performance and organization, they could satisfy tourists. They already perform for tours that are brought to them in Victory Women‟s Cultural Group by The Cardboard
Box and by Katrina Garises.
Opportunities for Tourism in the Western Suburbs 53
Figure 11. Victory Women’s Cultural Group Strategic Plans
The facilities planned specifically for Otjikaendu Den would include two stalls and a single sink for the men‟s and lady‟s rooms, as well as two urinals for the men‟s room. Maintenance of the facilities will be very important as well, as tourists and locals alike will feel more comfortable with clean, presentable, and functioning facilities.
Before the tours begin to frequent Otjikaendu Den, it is necessary to make sure the business is up to tourists‟ standards. From our personal observations at
Otjikaendu Den we saw an abundance of flies surrounding all the food and drinks. It was not appealing to us, and we know it would make tourists feel uncomfortable. The strategies therefore will address the issue of sanitation. Specifically, the problem is not so much one of unclean conditions; it is rather an aesthetic trait that we feel would dramatically improve the quality of a tourist‟s experience. People do not get sick from dining at Otjikaendu Den, but we felt uncomfortable with the flies nevertheless.
Program Evaluation and Review Technique (PERT)
By using the project management technique PERT, we proposed strategic
Opportunities for Tourism in the Western Suburbs 54 plans for both Otjikaendu Den and Ôasa Taradi for them to follow starting when we were still here and to continue after we left. We developed a list of activities that each business should carry out and how long each activity should take with respect to the others. This was a helpful technique to display our plans. We acquired price estimates for each task that required money. These were the business plans to be carried out in order to prepare the businesses for the Katutura Lunch Tour that is in its developing stages. The activity diagrams for each of the businesses can be found in the Appendices I and J.
Opportunities for Tourism in the Western Suburbs 55
Chapter 5: Recommendations
Through our analysis of the two businesses and the tourism infrastructure in
Katutura, we formulated recommendations that would help each business better encourage and prepare for tourism. The recommendations range from physical modifications of the store fronts to language education for the workers. Because the recommendations are aimed at widely varying businesses, the recommendations can be then applied to analogous businesses in the area. The recommendations in this chapter are specific to the both Otjikaendu Den and Ôasa Taradi.
Otjikaendu Den
In order to address our concerns with Otjikaendu Den, we formulated a set of recommendations for Melba Tjahere and the City of Windhoek to consider.
1. We recommend Otjikaendu Den invest in a more mature food storage plan.
Perhaps screens to cover the food before and after preparation would
alleviate the problem with the flies.
2. We recommend Otjikaendu Den pursue the partnership with Victory
Women‟s Cultural Group.
3. We recommend Otjikaendu Den investigate a way to acquire more parking
spaces, a double high fence, and more security guards.
4. We recommend Otjikaendu Den follow through with the business plans
and blueprints that already exist, including the ablution facilities as a top
priority.
5. We recommend Otjikaendu Den make a uniform for the workers, like a
simple unifying tee-shirt to be cost efficient. In the future we recommend
a traditional African uniform, but for the current moment, a tee-shirt would
be sufficient.
Opportunities for Tourism in the Western Suburbs 56
6. We recommend Otjikaendu Den advertise more.
7. We recommend Otjikaendu Den pursue a sponsorship from a beverage
company to acquire a quality set of glassware or discounted beverages.
Ôasa Taradi
Since we have helped them develop their store front, we have also developed several recommendations that will help the women of Ôasa Taradi maintain and improve upon the display.
1. We recommend that the women stay organized in their business structure
and store front displays.
2. We recommend that the women create an extra several products each week
to build their inventory.
3. We recommend that the women keep track of their inventory to monitor
sales and demand.
4. We recommend showcasing their history with a poster made by the man
who created their sign.
5. We recommend that the women sell their napkins and placemats in sets at
a slightly lower price to generate more sales.
6. We recommend that the women take German and English classes, as well
as various art classes and basic business classes if possible.
7. We recommend that they offer their website in other languages to attract
other markets.
8. We recommend that the women contact Aid to Artisans to determine
whether or not they could benefit from their assistance.
Victory Women’s Cultural Group
To assist the Victory Women‟s Cultural Group in maturing into a business, we have
Opportunities for Tourism in the Western Suburbs 57 formulated several suggestions for them.
1. We recommend that the culture group design an affordable costume that
all the performers could wear during their shows to unify the group.
2. We recommend the creation of regularly scheduled rehearsal periods to
improve their reliability and presentation.
3. We recommend also that the group open up a bank account. Payment to
the members could also be standardized, and records could be kept to
improve organization.
4. We recommend that the group attempt to acquire a loan for transport in
order to ensure their punctuality.
Katutura Lunch Tour
Both of Ôasa Taradi and Otjikaendu Den could benefit from a greater degree of exposure to tourists. Once the businesses are ready to accept tourist clients, the problem of bringing the tourists to the business will also become an issue. At the moment, Otjikaendu Den is not a stop along any of the tours we took. The primary reason for this was that Mama Melba‟s business is a restaurant. Normally this would not be a problem; the average tours, however, are at 9am and 2pm. These tour times miss the lunch hour and therefore any restaurants that might otherwise interest tourists. We therefore recommend that tour companies offer a Katutura Lunch Tour for tourists that are interested in midday tours between their morning and afternoon activities. This would be a substantially shorter tour, and would therefore be less expensive than the three hour historical tour. This would be attractive to tourists who would like to experience the local culture, but not want to commit to the three hour tour. A less expensive tour would encourage the tourists to spend more money at the businesses rather than the tour company, which in turn benefits the community.
Opportunities for Tourism in the Western Suburbs 58
To further develop the Katutura Lunch Tour concept, we also feel that the
Victory Women‟s Cultural Group could further enhance the cultural experience for the tourists with song and dance. It would also be a simple matter of having the tour agency phone the culture group ahead of time when the Katutura Lunch Tour is booked so the folkloric group would be able to prepare. The culture group would then accept donations from the tourists. The tour group would then arrive at Mama
Melba‟s restaurant in time to enjoy a relaxed traditional lunch accompanied by some traditional Namibian song and dance. After leaving the Otjikaendu Den, the tour group could visit Ôasa Taradi. There, they could enjoy a few pieces of candy while they shop and peruse through the quality souvenirs on sale there.
Problems with this tour include transportation for the Women‟s Victory
Culture group. They currently have no transportation to or from locations where they might perform. In this particular instance transportation would not be an issue as
Mama Melba‟s is close enough to Victory Women‟s Culture Group for the group to walk.
Pilot Tour
We recommend that pilot tours be taken to test the feasibility of our recommendations and implementations. Simon Wicks, one of the tour coordinators from the Cardboard Box has offered to present the Lunch Tour concept to his guests when it is prepared. Because of his willingness to help as well as his reestablished tour resources, we recommended that he be utilized to help execute the first pilot tour.
In an effort to better support the feasibility, quality, and effectiveness of the tour, we recommend surveying the tourists at the conclusion of the pilot tour in order to receive some feedback about the tour. The tourists could then be informed of the improvements we have recommended for each business, so that they are aware of
Opportunities for Tourism in the Western Suburbs 59 what is planned for the future. This feedback can then be used to improve and develop the tour further. Any positive feedback will ultimately help the success and marketability of the tour; any negative feedback can then be viewed as constructive advice to be used to improve the tour.
Opportunities for Tourism in the Western Suburbs 60
Chapter 6: Pilot Tour Results, Conclusions, and Future Directions
Following our recommendations, we began planning for the pilot tours that would test the feasibility of the Katutura Lunch Tour. To help us realize the implementation of the tour, we consulted with Simon Wicks of The Cardboard Box.
Mr. Wicks is one of the tour organizers for The Cardboard Box, and was able to provide us with some feedback that enabled us to formulate a more feasible tour.
A primary concern of ours had been the cost of the tour. After meeting with
Mr. Wicks, we decided that the price will ultimately be N$150-200 per person and will include the price of the meal at Melba‟s. As Mr. Wicks informed us, tourists are more likely to take and enjoy a tour if the package price is all inclusive. For this reason, Wicks recommended that all major costs be included. $50 of the tour price, for example, goes to the lunch bill for each person. This will include an entrée of the tourist‟s choice as well as a beverage. Any other drinks such as alcohol will then be at an additional cost to the tourist. Because the tour guide is not expected to do as much of a tour as he would normally do, and because the tour is shorter, the N$150-
200 will provide adequate income to pay the costs of the tour. The price is always subject to change, as petrol prices, food prices, and currency strength may at any time change the overall cost of the trip. Furthermore, the final price of the tour would be at the discretion of the tour company that runs the tour. The N$150-200, however, is similar to the Township Tour that the Cardboard Box offers, and therefore will likely be acceptable for tourists for the time being.
To further triangulate our pilot tour results we surveyed for the tourists to collect feedback after the tour. The specific questions that were asked of the tourists can be found in Appendix N. This chapter contains the results obtained from running the first Katutura Lunch Tour, as well as conclusions and recommendations for future
Opportunities for Tourism in the Western Suburbs 61 research.
First Pilot Tour
On Thursday 29 April 2004, at 11am, the first Katutura Lunch Tour took place. We had three tourists that accompanied Ephraim the tour guide from The
Cardboard Box. Following the tour, the three tourists filled out the survey we created to determine the feasibility of the tour itself. From the survey, we collected a great deal of useful information. All three of the tourists reported that they thoroughly enjoyed the pairing of Victory Women‟s Cultural Group and Mama Melba‟s
Otjikaendu Den. They all raved about the great food and the entertainment provided by the cultural group. In addition, all three tourists informed us that the prices at Ôasa
Taradi were too expensive. Two out of the three tourists purchased embroidered crafts regardless of the cost, but still mentioned that they were pricey. The third tourist confessed that the prices were just way too much to purchase anything. They would all have liked to hear more about the history of Katutura, and also felt the tour would benefit from a more lively tour guide. For the most part, the tourists enjoyed the tour and would recommend it to a friend, but improvements are necessary.
In regards to Ôasa Taradi, the tourists wished that they had been told more about the organization instead of just being brought there to make purchases. We agree with this, and in our earlier chapters, we did recommend that the tourists be informed and introduced to the women of Ôasa Taradi and what they are doing with their business. We feel that this can be remedied by increased familiarity between the tour guide and the women. He would then be able to explain more to the tourists on the way to the shop and also provide an introduction to the women at the shop. It is important to keep pressure on the tourists low, however. The tourists were pleased that there was not someone hovering over them encouraging them to buy or forcing
Opportunities for Tourism in the Western Suburbs 62 the products on them, unlike what you find with other small vendors in Windhoek.
This created a relaxing atmosphere which may in fact have encouraged them to buy.
The tourists felt comfortable at Mama Melba‟s and greatly enjoyed the food and cultural group, commenting that they had not heard music of that style since their arrival in Africa. They were concerned that it was awkward having the cultural group perform for such a small group. The group is used to this, though it is possible that the tourists may not be. This is not something which has a clear solution at this time, however, other than more populous tours. The only other complains at the restaurant involved the organization of the tour and presentation which again can be remedied by more familiarity with the tour and more practice. All observations from our pilot tour indicated that the Lunch Tour is feasible for those involved.
We would have run more tours had there been more time and had tourists been more readily available. It can also be difficult to sell something that is still in its infancy. With more time to plan and organize, it would likely become easier to deal with the logistics of the tour. Therefore, we recommend the promotion of the
Katutura Lunch Tour and multiple pilot tours to prepare the businesses for more tourists.
Future Directions
It is imperative that more tours be run, in the context of a test or practice or as the real thing. Many of the problems with our tour were directly related to the fact that it was the first tour that we had organized to follow that route. With more tours everyone will become more familiar, improving the product.
Most people we encountered in the course of our project expressed concern at the prices of the products at Ôasa Taradi. We recommend that they lower their prices by a small percentage and sell things as sets, but without an actual analysis of the
Opportunities for Tourism in the Western Suburbs 63 prices and costs it is not reasonable to make exact recommendations. Therefore, we feel that if someone was to come in and discern how much the material and labor for various pieces cost and compare that to the selling price it would provide more supporting evidence for such price adjustments. Also, if someone were able to do an analysis to determine a sufficient price for both tourists and the women- what price enables tourists to purchase more goods without significantly decreasing the income of the women- both the tourists and the women would benefit greatly.
When we first began this project, we were under the impression that more would be done with the Katutura Heritage Route (KHR) than was actually done, as our sponsor had other desires at this time. We feel that it is important to create an actual route for the KHR. As it stands currently there is a map of the route, but that merely highlights a few key things to see or visit in Katutura. We believe that if a more formalized route was created it would become easier to work with, as it would be less ambiguous.
In any case, our project has shown that communities can benefit from tourism in Katutura. We worked with two businesses and a developing group, and realized that there are many other attractive tourism products available in Katutura. If people are dedicated to developing Katutura as a tourist destination, we concluded that there is much potential in this field.
Opportunities for Tourism in the Western Suburbs 64
Chapter 7: References
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Opportunities for Tourism in the Western Suburbs 68
Chapter 8: Appendices
Appendix A: The Sponsor for the Katutura IQP Project Team
Our sponsor for our study on tourism in Katutura was The City of Windhoek, specifically the Tourism Division of the Department of Economic Development,
Tourism and Recreation. Tourism is recognized as an important tool for generating employment, as well as continuing economic and social benefits. The City of
Windhoek is made up of nine departments that are led by strategic executives and a chief executive officer. The Department of Economic Development, Tourism and
Recreation is made up of four divisions each headed by a chief or manager. The
Tourism Division is responsible for keeping the image of the city as an attractive and safe environment as well as developing promotional activities locally and abroad though public relations and marketing disciplines. The structure of The City of
Windhoek‟s Tourism Division is below.
Tourism Division Structure
Figure 12. Tourism Division Structure
Opportunities for Tourism in the Western Suburbs 69
Source: !Gaeb, Manfred. (2001). Presentation- Report 1. City of Windhoek.
Our liaisons were Marina Jarrett and Manfred !Gaeb. Marina Jarrett is the
Chief of Tourism and Manfred !Gaeb is a City Promotion Officer. The City
Promotion Officer‟s job is to extend the length tourists stay in the city of Windhoek and Namibia. They do this by developing maps, restaurant guides and brochures for the city of Windhoek, as well as promoting leisure and business tourism to broaden the revenue base.
Opportunities for Tourism in the Western Suburbs 70
Appendix B: Initial Interviews with Otjikaendu Den and Ôasa Taradi
Melba Tjahere‟s Interview 23 March 2004
How long have you lived here in Katutura? All life? What was it like? What did your parents do? She grew up in Windhoek, moved from the old location to the Herero location, to the Soweto location to where she is now. Once she started her business there were numerous businesses doing the same trade, she remembers ten businesses. Her father is a farmer and he farms with Cattle. Her mom was a domestic worker who sold food from home, food and beer.
When did your business begin? 1991
You were a chef before, what made you decide to switch to your own business? She was a head chef in Emens for ten year, then they sold the place. The new management--- her off the premises. The former owner of Emens (Johann ---) asked her to move to Copper Kettles (which he’d bought). So she moved with her former employer. She worked at Copper Kettles for eight years as the head chef. Johan Peters sold Copper Kettles. She was bought --- the business. Whilst she worked at Copper Kettles, she started thinking of, developed and idea of building her own business. Weekends when she wasn’t working she sold meat and potatoes outside of her house. Her customers started from five, grew to ten and more and more. Steadily increased. Then she found that the money that she made selling during the weekends surpassed the money she made at head chef. When her employer realized that she was selling during the weekends decided that she should work late and during the weekends. She told him that “no, I’m selling this and this and I am making more than what you are paying me, so if I have to work weekends and in the afternoon, you have to pay me more” he didn’t want to, so she quit.
You basically did this by yourself. Did you have any help from people? Funding? Was the money from the weekends enough to start the business? She did it all by herself. It‟s actually she started from the salary from Copper Kettle, then it grew from the money she made during the weekends, so she didn‟t get help from anyone?
What about now? Does she make all the important decisions now, or is there help? She didn‟t receive – She is the sole decision maker, there is not consultant helping her, but she picks up learning. When she picked up business woman of the year 2002, they shared ideas. So she picks up ideas from other people.
Restaurant is very popular with the locals. How many tourist visitors do you get? She doesn‟t think there is a continent that doesn‟t. All continents have countries with people who know about her place. A group of Spanish people came and filmed a video on her place, then there was a group from China, before that there was a group from Germany. These are documentaries. They play a role in marketing her business to people overseas. Germany, China, Spain, they know of her place from either word
Opportunities for Tourism in the Western Suburbs 71 of mouth or from the documentaries. The big tour operators bring their tours here. Face to face. People for overseas bring their visitors here.
How did the people from China know to come here for the documentary? She still doesn‟t know how those people came to know about the place, it is still a mystery of her. But they came to film her and her place. They wanted to know how to prepare the Smiley. Since first they have to put the head on the fire and remove the blackened whatever, the hair, then they need to wash it and put it in the pot. They wanted to film everything. Katutura Face to face, our empowerment programme bring them here. They spread the word, perhaps.
When were they here? China was this year, USA and Spain last year, Germany 2 years ago.
Do you have copies of the tapes? No.
Do you feel ready to handle an increased tourist volume? Yes. She already foresees an increase in demand, which is why she is extending. She has plans in place, wants to build a thatch roof. Ablution facilities on the property. She foresees this.
Any concerns about the local reaction to more tourists? She doesn’t think there will be a problem since most of her customers are well- travelled people who won’t have a problem accepting tourists. More tourists are a sign of quality.
How many people? Fourteen.
Katutura? Yes.
Who? She employs the different ethnic groups in Windhoek. Was not based on relationships. Interviews and such.
What is the hiring process? She does the normal interview process. Goes to the local radio stations and says she needs people of such skills. They phone in for interviews. Formal interviews.
How long have your employees been with you? Short time? Since the beginning? When she started, she started alone. After five years she started employing with. There is one lady who she started at five years, but most are new. Some leave and she hires more. What is the capacity of your restaurant? More than fifty at the same time.
Outside and inside?
Opportunities for Tourism in the Western Suburbs 72
Yes.
If there are confirmed bookings, she hires tents and temp workers to that enough people can fit into this area.
Is there a listed phone number in a restaurant guide? Reservations? She has her own brochures and is listed on most face to face brochures. Also radio stations.
What do they say? Manfred: In our restaurant guides, there are normal restaurants, and then there is authentic catering. She is listed under the authentic catering.
How do you pronounce it? O shE kIn do. Means “big fat woman.” It‟s an expression of herself. When she takes on something, she grabs it with both hands, like a big woman. ::Many gestures of large grabbing::
Is your restaurant known elsewhere? In other parts of the country? They might not know the names of which it is known, but if you ask “don‟t you know the woman who makes the goat heads?” they will direct you here.
What developments have been made? As she mentioned earlier, she started very small, and later on she put up these structures. And then she started to employ more people and expand her premises. Then you can see how she flourished through the years.
Is there a sign? Yes, there is. You just missed it. The Ôasa Taradi sign is sponsored by Pepsi, and this is posted by Coca Cola. Correction: it was removed last month. There will be a new sign on the house. The sign was obstructing traffic flow.
The day that you left Copper Kettles and decided to go on your own, did you foresee all of this? The restaurant, the awards? That was my dream, my dream was business. From day one, she knew that her dream was to make a success of her business. When she worked at Copper Kettles, her aim was to get as much ideas and information from what she was doing and she is very thankful from Johan, the owner of Copper Kettles. Business practice. Smiley? Smiley was from my mom. There was a time when Johann‟s wife was ill and Johan had to be a tour operator, and Melba had to run the business.
Do you feel your dream is achieved, or does that entail the thatched roof and such? Her dream never ends. The roof would be nice, but she wants forever to expand. More land, bigger.
Do you want to make this restaurant bigger, or do you want to open more? She‟d rather diversify. Diversify her business into a camping site or more. To open another business at another place would require more advertisement. A new business would not be known unless this place was already flourishing and great. She‟d rather
Opportunities for Tourism in the Western Suburbs 73 diversify this place, acquiring neighboring plots.
Is there land to acquire? Some.
Thatched roof here on this spot? Yes, on this spot.
The face to face stop here? Manfred: Every one.
Do they eat, or just stop. They eat. 26th of August, the Hereros have a huge celebration in Okahanja. She had confirmed bookings last year for the 24th. She put up a huge tent, catered for the 24 German students. She catered for 30 people. She is excited to get straight bookings from Germany.
Are there any souvenirs? “I ate Smiley at Mama Melbas!” things? Stuff to take home? That is a very brilliant idea. She used to have little souvenirs free of charge. She doesn‟t want to sell a different product at the same premises. She‟d rather bring in a vendor from the market to put up to sell things. She‟d also rather involve different cultural groups from different ethnic groups. Have them perform for the tourists while they eat. Dancing, etc.
Is language a problem with the foreign tourists? If you are really desperate or determined or hardworking, you can always communicate with people. Chinese don‟t speak English, or Herero, she doesn‟t speak Chinese. Communication with hands or signs or whatnot.
Business seems already well developed. Languages is not a large problem. Mostly the problem seems to be a matter of land and expansion. She is always open to learning new languages. She could only speak Herero and Africaans. She has learned some English because of the restaurant and can understand.
Any questions? She has no questions, but asks us to stop by, take a card, tell people at home. Spread the word.
Manfred: What I am telling Mama Melba‟s that we‟ll come back to get more specific information. How much people are paid, what profits.
Manfred: Used to have meetings with the other two professors and such. Marina wants that now.
Opportunities for Tourism in the Western Suburbs 74
Ôasa Taradi Interview 22 March 2004
This is our background interview, we‟ll come back later to get more details, etc. First woman: They started in 1989 with the Red Cross, but then they started only as a little walk project, but then in 1992 Red Cross decided to close down, so they started a crafts (in 1993), which is what they are busy with now. They received assistance from Germany and they got assistance from volunteer teachers from Germany. From Germany they got the money to buy this house
How long have you lived in Katutura, all of life? Parents? Life? First woman: Born and bred in Katutura. And then her mom used to teach needlework at a certain school, and then she was a domestic worker. At the house of the domestic work she did domestic work. She learned the skill from her mom in 1918, she went to Germany for several months for training. Second woman - Selma: Born in Hobadis(sp). Her parents passed away while she was young. Her uncle took her in. She went to school in Walfreden(sp). After completing school she came to Windhoek. Worked as a cleaner at Katutura hospital. In 1975 she gave birth to her firstborn, and left work in Katutura. In 1985 she started at Oncara(sp), a business which produced leather products. She then moved to a different leather business. She went to visit Alexandrina, who gave her work here.
Who is Mrs. Jutta Rohwer (Alexandrina) Trust coordinator
How many people are employed by Ôasa Taradi? First woman: Approx 20. All live in Katutura. Mostly Hereros and Damaras. A mixed group, though there are sisters working
How do people get jobs here? The original trust lady, or do they just come, or what? First woman: They started at the Red Cross. Some of the women came from the Red Cross organization. She knew needlework, but went to Red Cross to learn to embroider. Some of these learners from the Red Cross then moved to Ôasa Taradi. From these women it moves via word of mouth.
How is payment organized? First woman: They are paid on the end product. If they are given, for example, five products for a week‟s time, if they finish the five, then they are paid for all five of them, but if they finish only one, then they get paid for only that one. Manfred: They serve much as a selling basis to get the work from the people to they buyers. They take in orders from Germany and have several shops, a place downtown, and sell online. These orders come in and then are passed along to the ladies.
Is there a leader for decisions? Manfred: Mrs. Jutta runs the business, takes in the order. She then distributes evenly between it all. Selma looks after the household and is always here. Do you always come to the house? The women only come on Fridays to the house to get together. Three ladies do the sewing and the others do work at home. It is hand embroidery, and then the pieces
Opportunities for Tourism in the Western Suburbs 75 are brought to the house to be sewn together. Working at home allows the women to work after children. There are three that work on machines.
How is material distributed? Basically Jutta takes some of the profits which is used to purchase the material that is used. Other profit is used to pay the women.
Who does this help? Where do people buy things, how does it work to sell to tourists? As it was highlighted in the main brochure, some women working here have more than six children and our single mothers. Now that they are focusing on tourism they would like to set up a shop here on the premises for tourists. Perhaps have the ability for tourists to help to support them, helping with school costs. Would like to keep a shop in the crafts center, but primarily be centered here at the house.
How did the community receive the business? How does the community feel about it? How do people know about the business originally? Basically it is the advertising on the board outside. Those outside see it and come and ask. Also information travels by word of mouth. The community reaction was very positive, locals were able to bring their own work out here to be done.
When was the sign put up? About 5 years ago.
Have tours ever stopped here? Besides ours? Only through Mrs. Jutta. Three or four times they‟ve come on busses. Last time was November. The store is at the front and is directly accessable from the street.
Did the people from the tours buy things? Yes yes. Within half an hour when those people came they sold N$3000 worth of things.
Are they ready for more tours to stop by? What sort of setup/organization do you feel is needed? If they put up a very nice set up, it will be very neat and tidy and people will be attracted by that specifically, and would generate more sales.
If sales are increased, is there enough infrastructure/enough women to meet the demand? They would put in extra hours and more labor to meet demand. Basically working overtime, What about hiring more women? They‟ve got already sufficient workers on by for standby. If there is not enough work, then they tell the women to wait. If there is more work, then the women just get more work. What about material? They have an account at the wholesaler. There would be no problem meeting demands in the area of material.
What did you envision originally when the business was began?
Opportunities for Tourism in the Western Suburbs 76
At the business was basically demand-driven. If there was no income at all, they made the effort of taking the material from house to house and to sell at street markets. This was their vision to create more demand, to become known. Basically showing what they have and selling people. There is a Saturday street market at the end of town.
Can we have meetings with more people? Meets with all only on Fridays. Perhaps with Jutta also.
Are all the women as ambitious about this as you are? She cannot really tell the others, but most are without work, and would really like to see the business flourish.
Meeting next Friday, the 2nd of April. After 2pm.
What hours are they generally open here? From half past seven to half past four. Selma says she is on standby here. ::laughs::
Do you have any plans for taking more classes to improve skill levels? They used to get extra courses. Would love additional courses to improve skills.
Where did they take these courses before? Now? Mrs. Jutta used to bring in companies, or private individuals with better skills to bring and share.
Can we help them so that they can go and study? We will try our best.
Was there anything that they wanted to say or ask? Selma wants German classes to communicate with German tourists! Wants to go and study needlework, learn to cut the material and stuff. First woman: Wants to upgrade her German. How many people would need to learn to speak German? Ask Friday.
Out of the twenty, how many people work in the storefront?
What languages are spoken? – Ask Friday. Selma speaks Herero, a little Oshiwambo, some English, but wants German.
Are tourists predominately German? Selma: yes. Manfred: Over 60% of tourists to Windhoek are german. 80% of Germans travel around the world.
If they set up a little shop,
Opportunities for Tourism in the Western Suburbs 77
Appendix C: Employee Interviews
Interview with the staff of Otjikaendu Den
1. How long have you worked for Mama Melba‟s? -some 3-4 years, others just a month or two. It used to be a very small business and now it is a larger business so more people work here.
2. How did you get hired by Mama Melba? -Some people used to come from South Africa, found through the newspapers, advertisements. Then they get the phone number and get in touch.
3. Do you have any other employment outside working at the Otjikaendu Den? If so, where else do you work, and what sort of job is it? no
4. How is the pay at Mama Melba‟s? -if you‟ve been here longer you get paid more than someone who just started. If you are a cook you get paid differently than if you are a waitress
5. How often are you paid? Monthly like most everyone else? -monthly
6. How does Mama Melba train you for your job? -Mama Melba with the help of other people to train for each position.
7. Is there opportunity for advancement at Mama Melbas? -if she gets a better job, she will leave for it. -the boys love it here, they don‟t plan on going anywhere else ever.
8. What sort of changes in the business have you noticed over the last several years? Good? Bad? Indifferent? -started on the street, now we‟re inside in a restaurant, it has evolved in a very good way. Started with 3 workers now there are 14. didn‟t used to have electricity, now they do. Its good. Boys are shy.
9. Would it be good for you personally if Mama Melba‟s were to expand and grow?
Opportunities for Tourism in the Western Suburbs 78
-Yes it would be good because she employs a lot of people, willing to hire more. -yes
10. How would you feel serving a larger number of locals? Tourists? -they would feel great because they would be making more money and serving more people -good for lots of locals, and tourists are welcome. They welcome as many as can come.
11. Are there any advantages for the community that you could see resulting from some growth in her business? -growth would make it better.
12. Are there any problems that you feel may arise from within the business as the result of the development of her business?
13. Are there any external problems with the community perhaps that might result from the growth of her business? -no problems, they don‟t fight, or play loud music. It‟s protected. Neighbors and community don‟t have a problem. The more they extend it, the more protection they need, they have guards on standby. -boys love the place, no problems
-impossible to get any of the land, because everyone wants to stay because they like the area and business.
14. Could you afford a loan? -she will try
NOTES THAT GO BEYOND ORIGIONAL QUESTION STRUCTURE: one girl says if she could get loans for extending the place, it would be better, building bricks or a thatched roof would make it bigger and fit more people. If they could extend the goods they are selling, get more to sell, more to make. one girl wants a wall so people can‟t see out to the street guy wants toilets for males and females
Opportunities for Tourism in the Western Suburbs 79 newspapers should advertise more the only thing that specializes them from the rest of the places is the goats head. So besides advertisements, people hear about the goats head and come here.
Need community involvement. She‟s serving leftovers to the neighbors free of charge, so if there are more people they will order and make more and have more leftovers for the neighbors.
The shy guys want the place to grow, they need changes. The security guard at the meeting says there should be more security guards when more people come because he knows crime will be a problem (even though the other workers think there will be no problems)
Melba says they put coals on a hotboard to warm up the place in the winter time. Wants hanging heaters for wintertime.
I asked what the MOST important developments are that require money. TOILETS obviously are important. Double the fence for more security, make it taller before tourists come. Toilets are very necessary. Melba says “first of all the toilets. By next week she will start with the foundation of the toilets, and Tuesday a bigger container (vender) for coca cola will get here. It‟s a kitchen that is portable, she got it as a prize from Business Woman of the Year. Need interlocks so the tent isn‟t dirt on the ground, needs to have foundation. Needs a bigger storage for food. More tables, something like the long table we are sitting at, more out there. Uniforms for the servers so they all look the same. Glasses. She would pay the culture group to come and entertain.”
They have invited the culture group before, and they have come many times for the tourists.
She is starting the toilets without a loan.
Makes about 100 heads a day, and they all get eaten.
What do you want from us? -Melba- the toilets and the thatched roof. Need money to pay for it. Decorations to attract the tourists.
Guys really want the place to expand, whenever they leave work the go home with pride
Sponsor – chunga suggested What about taffel, or Windhoek lager, or hansa? Everyone loves beer….sponsors would supply her with glassware. And possibly a presentational tap or something.. a discount on the drinks or whatever. We could try to make some contacts and see how feasible that may be.
African decorations. Craft centers. Guys want to help decorate.
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Lunch tour. Interested in setting that up. Talk with the cardboard box, face to face etc. companies that have their own vans. Cheaper tour maybe gets really popular. It would also be good for organizing the woman‟s victory group through the tourist agencies.
She‟s got the blueprints, but she needs money to see that them done. They may not be our suggestions, but we can say whether or not we think they‟re worth the time and money at the moment. We can sort of approve them I guess. These ideas can still be part of our analysis. We can create a pert study etc. We can do a bit of research into finding businesses that could make them happen, and price them out. She doesn‟t have anyone in mind right yet for the thatch roof. It just says „thatch roof professional‟.
Get a car? Deliveries, pick people up to come here, drop them off when it‟s over.
Staff training for hospitality and catering for others needed.
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Interview with staff of Ôasa Taradi April 2nd, 2004 at Ôasa Taradi
10 women attended the meeting. Peter and Lindsey introduced themselves to each of them.
How does everyone feel about the development of Ôasa Taradi as a tourist attraction? -Its good. We want to make our business grow (woman speaking while also embroidering on her lap) -Manfred translated- woman says if more tourists can come to the place it would only be beneficial to them. When tourists don’t come here, there are quiet times and they don’t even sell their products in the craft center so it’s like they are unemployed.
Are you able to communicate with the tourists? -Most of the ladies (I was also a seller at the crafts center) so I know how to be punctual and nice with the customers. But most of the time, when the tourists are coming, it means some of us must be standing there and talking to the tourists and explain everything.
Interested in language classes? -YES. Everyone says yes. German is fun. English would be helpful too. -When we are selling at the markets, it means someone must speak English to have more interaction and more things would be sold. -French also maybe. -Most of the tourists are German, then English, then French and Italy. -Don’t really know where they are from though, because they don’t do introduction.
Do you want to expand the product further? New ideas? -Manfred translated- (I noticed talk about toilet facilities in regards to product diversification grr)- They are very much pro to the idea of extending the structure and creating more working space so that everybody could be accommodated working in the house, also adding toilet facilities.
What about the product? Manfred translated again from the same woman- They are not stagnating at one place with the products. Each year there is a different person or volunteer that comes and helps them with different designs. Currently they have one lady doing the designer, so they are equipped and on date with different designs.
Interested in art classes? (lots of clicks!) Manfred translated- Yes they are interested in different types of artistic works, how to cut the material, how to do a design, and technique. Basic skills to do this type of work would be helpful. -one woman wants additional skills besides just embroidering or just sewing. Want to cut and design and create.
When you do your work at home, how much time during the course of the day do you give to crafting your goods? Manfred- depends on the type of product. For example a pillow case, designing a zebra, depends on size of zebra.
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-10 towels a week some of the ladies turned in 2 cushions with difficult etching
Woman held up a towel design she was working on with 3 animals embroidered that she brought in today and was working on during the meeting.
Another would take a day (white square with animals embroidered in black) SEE PICTURE
This would be a pencil case, 10 a day depending on how fast you work, red with embroidering. Picture was taken of a final product.
Perhaps 2 ladies got tablecloth orders and 2 other ladies might have been given pillow cases to make 4 of them.
Does anyone else have jobs? There are a few that do housework, most just do embroidery. 8 hour work day, wake up and make things, but they are not employed, they get paid for the products, not the time.
Do you think the work load will be too much if more tourists come? Can we hire more or work more hours? -Manfred translated- If demands increase, they will definitely look at the option of hiring more people, but currently what they do is that if somebody comes and shows an interest in the type of work they do, they will try to transfer the skills to them or see how much they know about the skills and keep the people for future usage.
Any ideas or plans that would help bring more tourists? -(in mixed English and damara) You can arrange with different touring companies to bring additional tourists to the place, but if they do that they have to pay commissions to the touring companies, so with money yes.
Do you think you could afford the time and money to decorate? Manfred translated- They have the time, but resources and finances, a bit lacking.
Any need for additional security if more tourists were to come? -Manfred translated- (several people spoke) They fear the loss of products through the front door into cars, but they are aware of their neighborhood and could hire somebody to look after the cars provided they had money to hire.
Any comments and concerns? -currently, they are depending on the tourists that come to this premises and the craft center. But if they could build up a strategic alliance or a network with other similar businesses in other countries and on demand could export their demands, they would appreciate it and see a bright future. -they would like to extend the place. Manfred said that he explained to them that if there is sufficient tourist demand, they can provide parking spaces in the land behind the house, so first the tourist demand must come first.
Any idea on how much improvements or expansions would cost? -Manfred translated- currently, to be able to afford a loan and to pay it back, would
Opportunities for Tourism in the Western Suburbs 83 be virtually impossible. She cannot say that either because she would need to sit down with Jutta to see what their finances are like to make a review to see whether they would be able to afford to payback such a loan. She doesn’t foresee any means to pay back such a loan for these improvements. Also, the money that comes into the organization gets redistributed for salaries and payments, so it would really depend on that, but if they can increase the demand, then they will be able to afford a bank loan. Increase demand, and extend business a little bit.
Manfred says this is considered a non-profit organization. He asked them how much it would cost to extend the land and make a toilet facility. They will need to draw up the plans and get an estimate.
What would you like to see happen to the storefront in terms of decoration to make it more attractive to tourists? -(They spoke to each other and then answered to Manfred after thinking for awhile)- they can actually look at other textile companies to see how they operate and beautify their storefronts and they plan to do that.
How would you feel about some kind of large poster that described the history of Ôasa Taradi? Something that tourists could come to see and look at? -Also a good idea, we have papers that tell our history of where we come from, with the Red Cross, probably to be painted.
How long to embroider a large tablecloth? 1 day, each piece attached to the tablecloth, about 10 pieces. We must match everything when we are starting to do the embroidery at our house. Woman showed a small tablecloth and said it would take a day, there were 7 separate embroidered ostriches on it.
For a bag or a tablecloth, how much does the material cost? How much does the woman get paid for making it? How much does it sell for? How much is the profit to the whole business? -(it appears as if there is only one woman who has an idea, the rest embroider or listen or stare into space)- Manfred translates- they basically know the entire process. They know exactly how much the material costs, and additional charges like the cotton they use for sewing and electricity charges on top of that. They know exactly the salaries of the people working. Sometimes they get 6,000, sometimes 12,000, but the net profit they necessarily don’t know it. Woman thinks they have a 30% markup from product+charges, check with Jutta.
-its an open system. Jutta is really open with them, they get the invoices of the material calls. They are given x amount of money to get additional stuff to buy for themselves. They wouldn’t say that Jutta is putting a trick on them.
-Pay 15 for material, 5 dollars for embroidery, 6 dollars for cotton, 8 dollars for sewing. Selling price would be 60 or 65 dollars.
Any requests of us? -“#1- to get more clients and if possible donations to enlarge our business to get extra women to empower” Manfred translated from same woman- it is a trust that they have, most of these
Opportunities for Tourism in the Western Suburbs 84 women are unemployed and the wages they get go straight to providing for their children and themselves so they would rather get extra help for payment of their children’s school. If they could get it through a sponsor or any other means they would really appreciate it. So they have money they owe to the municipality for the house and it is impossible to do that on just their wages alone. They need more business. -Touching on the sad side. Some of the children of these mothers are without their fathers, some have died in car accidents, some are just not there. Some of these children are at secondary schools, with these salaries, they can’t afford to pay school fees. When business was good, they used to get loans from the coordinator, but now they can only get loans from her up to 250 dollars and that doesn’t do much, so they want to increase the tourism flow and/or find some sort of a grant to help them. -They want their children to finish school because they want them to find employment. School is expensive though, so they are motivated to work to help sustain their education. (in my own words) -sometimes when they are coming here, they come with their kids and work for the whole day. Is there a possibility that when they are coming with the kids whether we can secure funds to help the kids to have something to eat on that specific day? -we asked them whether they can take classes. Can that also be based on their children? Can they get extra classes for their children on math or something?
After the meeting closed, one of the women pulled me aside to bring up issues they had with wages. She said she got paid 150 and someone else got paid 700. Sewers get paid more money and they don‟t think it is fair. Another woman joined in the conversation as well. They want to see us again Monday around 10am.
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Appendix D: Interviews with neighbors of Otjikaendu Den and Ôasa Taradi
Ojtikaendu Den
1. Have you lived in Katutura all your life? How long have you lived in proximity to Mama Melbas?
2. Do you ever visit Mama Melbas for either socialization or for a meal etc?
3. Do you enjoy the establishment?
4. What positive effects if any do you notice as a result of her restaurant‟s presence?
5. What negative effects, if any, do you notice as a result of her restaurant‟s presence?
6. Have you noticed any changes to the community that have occurred over the last several years that you would attribute to her restaurant?
7. What are your feelings about the prospect of expansion for Mama Melba‟s business? Do you think problems would arise if she were to extend her property? Would there be problems if the business simply became more widely used by both tourists and locals alike?
8. Since it is mostly locals who frequent her restaurant at the moment, how do you feel an increased number of tourist clients would be received by the community?
9. What do you feel are some strengths/weaknesses of the business and its development?
10. What do you feel might be some opportunities or threats for the business and its development?
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Katina - 1st Neighbor Interview A man at home. Translated by Willi
1. He‟s lived near Mama Melba‟s for 18 years. 2. He does not visit Mama Melba‟s to eat, but he buys a lot of meat. 3. Does not go to there to socialize, he does that at home. 4. He‟s never noticed any problems with the restaurant so far. No violence or noise, or etc. This is the only shebeen without these problems. ::sounds pleased:: Does not feel that there will be a problem with more people at the neighborhood. He feels that control mechanisms are in place so it would not get out of hand. Benefit: It is a good thing for tourists to come to experience the flavor and such of the area. 5. Problem: Youth are allowed in, so there might be alcohol given to them. Also, wrong type of people (locals) coming in might have a negative influence. 6. There is a growing support for her business, both from the community and with tourism. 7. He has no problem with the expansion of the property. If business comes to that point, then she must go for it. 8. He has not experienced any negative side effects from tourism. He feels that it is a safe place for tourists. Has not been any camera thefts, cars broken into, etc. 9. Strength: She provides a good service of food Weakness: None. 10. He could not think of any threats or opportunities for the business and its development.
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Katina – 2nd Interview A young woman
1. Her parents have lived here for 10 or 12 years. She lived here from ‟96 to ‟97, and then she went to Luderlitz, and came back in 2000. 2. She does not visit Mama Melbas for socialization or food. It‟s not her type of location for socialization. 3. One deterrent for her is that the place is frequented more by Hereros. “they are not friendly if they don‟t know you.” “I don‟t have a problem with people coming through the neighborhood. There is no loud music. You can see the lights and there are people, but they aren‟t loud.” 4. A benefit for her was that they buy their meat there. 5. A problem with the place is that there is only the inside toilet which is used by both the residents and the patrons. She‟d like to see outside toilets, one male, one female. 6. She‟s not been here long enough to notice any changes due to the restaurant. 7. She has no problem with an expansion of the property, Melba should. There is no crime and no robberies – they don‟t always open the gates late (after 3), there is some kind of security. 8. There should be no problem with more tourists. German friends of locals go already. “I just go to restaurants, not to clubs or shebeens” 9. Strengths: “They sell things, you can even eat there. There is no crime, not in this area, maybe elsewhere.” 10. Threat/Competition: There are two shebeens in the area, one run by Germans. “It‟s a nice place, though I don‟t go.”
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Katina – 3rd Interview Two women at a local shebeen Miss. Shikalepo (most of interview done w/ Shikalepo)
1. They have lived here for 11 and 13 years. 2. She does go to Mama Melba‟s, her house is very near. She goes to buy meat, or if she doesn‟t want to cook, or to socialize. 3. She does enjoy the establishment. 4 & 5. Positive/Negative: The place is fine, just a bit small and overcrowded. Sometimes they play loud music, at the end of the month. 6. There is no fighting at Mama Melba‟s, unlike many other places. The place has been good for Melba‟s kids. The money provides for food and education. Community benefit: This place (the shebeen we were in) has no food, so we can go there. It also provides employment. If Melba‟s “would close, the other people would probably cry more than her.” Food is expensive in town, the prices are more reasonable at Mama Melba‟s. 7. She wants to see the business enlarged and has no problem with it. It‟s a good place to send the children if you get held up at work or school if you leave money at home. “‟If I‟m not home by six, go see Auntie Melba for dinner.‟” 8. She feels that Melba should not move from her current location, but should expand the place. She has no problem with this, as long as it stays within Melba‟s control 9. Melba- she is a strong woman who keeps control. She was unable to think of a weakness of the business. 10. She feels that there is no threat to the business, as no one else sells what she does. Though she sells alcohol, it is only an addition to the food.
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Katina – 4th Interview A new father, works with Kennedy (our driver)
1. He is a newcomer to the neighborhood, just moved with his family and new baby. Has only been there for 3 weeks, but plans to live there for the rest of his life. 2. He has not visited yet, he has the will to visit, but not the time. 3. He‟s so far found it to be very cool, very calm, no noise at the present. 4 &5. He says that you always expect noise when things get large, but that she knows the regulations and keeps it quiet. 6. There are benefits to having the tourists come, they might invest or advertise. The community benefits from plans, infrastructure, and improvement. Changes: Irrelevant due to short time present 7. He feels that she should expand, as long as she does so lawfully and does not offend the neighbors. She needs to be licensed. 8. He feels that there would be no problem with the tourists coming, because “Namibians are the best” and friendly. 9. A way to improve would be to use more advertisements. 10. He feels that there are great opportunities, good for “coming up.” The most important thing is to be there lawfully. Must not offend people
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Lindsey – 1st Interview English was spoken Woman in early 20s
1. She has lived in Katutura all her life, directly across from Mama Melbas establishment. 2. She hangs out at Mama Melba‟s for socialization and also to eat and drink. In fact on our way out of Mama Melba‟s, she was inside having a conversation with one of the employees. 3. Yes, she very much enjoys it. Smiley is her favorite. 4. She couldn‟t think of any negative effects from Mama Melbas place. Everything is positive, she makes people happy and makes the community very closely knit. It is a good place to go and hang out and eat. 5. She thinks it is nice to have tourists because she knows it helps Mama Melba in her business and understands that the community also benefits. She said she would go and interact with the tourists as well and make them feel welcome. 6. She was very vague on this response and said that there would be lots of benefits but had nothing to say further. I offered some examples and she agreed with them with a smile and excitement about the money circulating and helping the whole suburb of Katutura to become more comfortable in their living. 7. No real reaction to this question. A nod told us that she was unclear of the question so we moved on since it was somewhat answered in the previous question. 8. She said that there is no land for her to expand on, but if there was land and she did in fact expand, that there would be no problems with the community. She doesn‟t know how her neighbors feel but the people she hangs out with at Mama Melbas are all okay with tourists coming and they support Mama Melba. They would not alienate the tourists. 9. She would be fine with it because she knows of the long term benefits. 10. No weaknesses, only positive things were pointed out like the friendly atmosphere and convenient location. 11. Question was not asked because of her lack of input on the questions that required thoughtfulness. Subject was becoming bored and fidgety.
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Lindsey – 2nd Interview Afrikaans, Translators from the Poly Middle-aged woman with children
1. She has lived down the street from Mama Melbas for only five years. 2. She doesn‟t usually go and eat in the restaurant, but oftentimes buys the meat from Mama Melba and takes it back to her house to feed her family. 3. She smiled and nodded. 4. She couldn‟t think of any negative effects and didn‟t have much of an input on positive effects either, but there were no complaints. 5. She had no input on how she would feel about more people being there specifically. 6. She said that if more people went to Mama Melba‟s and it got busier and more profitable, then Mama Melba would need to hire more people from the community and in turn help more people from the community make money to support themselves or their families. She felt strongly about this, according to the translators and also the way she was speaking, it was clear that she was passionate about the unemployment topic. 7. She has only lived there for five years so she hasn‟t noticed any significant changes in the community as a result of Mama Melbas establishment. 8. Again she was very positive about expansion because it creates more jobs, however she doesn‟t believe it would be possible to expand her property because people don‟t want to move out of their plots. The tourists would be welcome, but she personally would not be able to communicate them because of language and also because she doesn‟t normally eat in at Mama Melbas. 9. This was answered in question 8. 10. She says she is happy with the business right now. 11. N/A
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Lindsey 3rd Interview, Afrikaans, Translators from the Poly Elderly man, appeared sickly
1. He has lived down the block from Mama Melbas for 11 years and there were children running around. 2. He hangs out at Mama Melbas often. 3. He enjoys the place. 4. It is a convenient place to eat and have locals to socialize with. 5. He said that if more tourists came he would go and talk to them and ask for business ideas. He wants tourists to come. 6. He thinks more people would probably get jobs and the lives of the people living in Katutura would improve. 7. No changes have been observed. 8. He agrees that Mama Melba and the community will benefit from expansion and an increased volume of tourists. 9. Already answered in question 8. 10. N/A 11. N/A
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Peter 1st Interview Middle Aged Gentleman
1. Yes, the gentleman lived there for his entire life, and has been near Mama Melba‟s for about 10 years. 2. No, the man doesn‟t ever go visit her establishment for either socialization or for food. 3. Yes, for the most part, the gentleman enjoys the business. 4. One main complaint is the lack of lights, but almost more importantly, is the loud music. The gentleman also mentioned that a few times, people had actually gone and urinated on his fence. 5. The gentleman thought it would be great, and visitors from abroad would be the best. 6. The gentleman believed that people could benefit from Mama Melba‟s business development through increased employment and greater socializing. 7. He hasn‟t noticed much change, and has been relatively satisfied with it, with the exception of the urination on his fence. 8. Parking is definitely an issue. The gentleman felt that some sort of parking arrangement must be made to keep people from parking in front of people‟s driveways. Also, any effort made to prevent use of his fence as a public restroom would be appreciated. 9. The gentleman felt that foreigners would be great, and would bring some much needed cash flow to the area. Tourists would be welcomed. 10. Some weaknesses would be a strong need for toilets, while some strengths might be the simple fact that more people would come and use her business, and help create more jobs in the area. 11. Employment would certainly be a strong opportunity for people living in the community. One threat, however, would be the crazy hours that some of the employees work.
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Peter 2nd Interview Middle Aged Lady
1. Yes, the lady had lived there for her whole life, and has been next door to Mama Melba‟s for around 12 years. 2. Yes, but mainly just to buy meals and such; visits aren‟t as much for the socialization with others. 3. No, the lady doesn‟t really care one way or another. 4. The noise is the greatest concern for this neighbor. Since her bedroom faces Mama Melba‟s across her back yard, she sometimes has a hard time dealing with the loud music late at night. 5. If she was more conservative and structured with regards to her hours of operation, and also was more careful with the volume of her music, everything would be fine. 6. No real opinion one way or another; the lady had a difficult time brainstorming ideas. 7. No real changes have been noticed. 8. Parking is definitely an issue. The gentleman felt that some sort of parking arrangement must be made to keep people from parking in front of people‟s driveways. Also, any effort made to prevent use of his fence as a public restroom would be appreciated. 9. The gentleman felt that foreigners would be great, and would bring some much needed cash flow to the area. Tourists would be welcomed. 10. Some weaknesses would be a strong need for toilets, while some strengths might be the simple fact that more people would come and use her business, and help create more jobs in the area 11. Employment would certainly be a strong opportunity for people living in the community. One threat, however, would be the crazy hours that some of the employees work.
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Peter 3rd Interview Young Man
1. Yes, the young man had been there for his whole life, and has lived a few houses down from Mama Melba‟s for almost 14 years. 2. Yes, the young man usually just goes there for something cold to drink. 3. Yes, the young man does enjoy his visits to the establishment. 4. The music doesn‟t generally cater to the many tastes of the rest of the community. In other words, there‟s a lack of variety in the music 5. No problems, really, but was concerned that if the place became overcrowded, then crime might become a problem. 6. No, the young man felt that the community wouldn‟t benefit simply because from his own experience, her wages are too low. He felt that Mama Melba her self would be the only one to truly benefit from any development 7. The young man couldn‟t think of any real remarkable changes 8. The young man felt that there would be a dramatic increase in the number of Herero‟s that would frequent the neighborhood. 9. The young man said tourists would be welcome with “open arms”. 10. The young man was worried that the more wealthy patrons would receive the better service and quality, thus creating some form of unfairness. Some strength would be the extra capacity that she‟s developing. 11. The young man wasn‟t sure about all the opportunities, but felt that a big threat would be insufficient wages for the employees.
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Peter 4th Interview Elderly Lady
1. Yes, the lady had lived there for her whole life, and has lived in the first house in the area since the settlement in the area. She‟s therefore been near Mama Melba‟s for as long as the business has been in existence. 2. Yes, the lady had lived there for her whole life, and has lived in the first house in the area since the settlement in the area. She‟s therefore been near Mama Melba‟s for as long as the business has been in existence. 3. No, the lady doesn‟t ever visit, so there‟s really no opinion one way or the other. 4. The lady felt that a negative effect would be that her place might encourage alcoholism in children. 5. The lady was a bit worried that crime might increase, although there‟s no real problem at the moment. 6. No real opinion either way 7. The lady felt that racism might be an issue 8. The lady felt that racism might be an issue 9. No comment 10. N/A 11. N/A
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Ôasa Taradi
1. Are you familiar with the Ôasa Taradi? Do you know the women working
there?
2. How do you feel in regards to the business? Do you have any complaints or
praises?
3. Has Ôasa Taradi had an influence in the community that you have seen?
4. Does the clientele or business bother you in your home?
5. How would you feel about more people visiting the house? If the business
grew there may be more people coming through the neighborhood.
6. What benefits do you imagine could come of more tourists coming to Ôasa
Taradi?
7. What do you feel are some strengths/weaknesses of the business and its development?
8. What do you feel might be some opportunities or threats for the business and its development?
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Katina – 1st Interview A middle-aged Angolan woman In Ovambo/Afrikaans
1. She knows some of the women. Some by name and others only by sight. Her children do know their children 2. She praises the business. [why?] Since she doesn‟t know how to sew, she can to learn to cut and sew. 3. Just that they can take stuff there for repairs. 4. No, they don‟t bother her. 5. No problem with expanding, neighborhood has to grow. Would encourage people to come. 6. [Takes a long time to explain, seems difficult – “tourist” and “benefit”] If it grows, other businesses may also come, [people don‟t have to go so far. 7. No weaknesses. Only strengths. [which are?] It‟s like an interaction, people learn from tourist, tourist learn of people and food. Neighbors ma get jobs if the business expands. 8. N/A
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Katina – 2nd Interview Lily Mogagabe (mO ha ha bA) An older teacher at the Creche on the corner In English
1. She used to sew, and knows the women. She says she used to sew better than others who go to university, started just to not be idle. 2. “Super. Very very good. If I don‟t have time to repair, I send it there. I don‟t have to take a taxi to town.” 3. Not at all. 4. No, everybody has to make a living, everyone has a family to take care of. 5. No problem. We want to see them. Once a bishop came from Washington D.C. and built a church, but he has passed on. 6. Yes, especially to us here. Educational toys for children, educational books, even just for the children to see Americans. 7. “I don‟t know much about what they do. I know what they make [lists the various products]” She then talked about the cloth bags and using them instead of plastic. 8. N/A
Katina – 3rd Interview A woman at home
1. Yes, she knows the women, though her children are more familiar. 2. No complaints, but she does not visit the business. 3. No influence. 4. No. 5. No problem with more people. They don‟t cause any disturbances/ 6. No, other businesses could grow. 7. A strong point: It attracts more tourists who buy things. 8. N/A
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Lindsey‟s First Interview, Africanz was spoken Woman of around 40 years old with many children and older women taking care of the children. Lives right next door to Ôasa Taradi.
1. Yes they know the place, and the children know eachother. 2. She thinks they are very helpful, and has no problem with the business. Woman had a strange conflict with the caretaker and was very negative, but it was a personal problem and she does not hold it against the business itself. 3. She has not seen an influence in the community. 4. No, the business doesn‟t bother her. 5. She has no problem with more people visiting. 6. She believes it would create more jobs for the local community. 7. N/A 8. N/A
Lindsey‟s Second Interview, Africanz and English was spoken Two women were sitting in the living room. Both around 50 or 60, one spoke Africanz and the other spoke English. The ideas came from the English speaking woman.
1. Yes they know the women working there. 2. They have no problems with the business. 3. Yes, the business assists the community because the locals can buy from the business things that are sometimes cheaper than they can find at the markets. 4. The business does not bother them at home at all. 5. They will accept more tourists. 6. The community could benefit from the business if the business developed. It would create more jobs and reduce the number of youngsters on the street. The community will benefit more from the facilities and products offered. 7. N/A 8. N/A
Lindsey‟s Third Interview, Africanz was spoken Elderly woman, her children were selling fruit on the street outside.
1. Yes she knows them all well and knows the children too. 2. No problems or complaints about the business. 3. Yes, they make a lot of nice things. 4. No, she thinks the business as well as its clientele is very peaceful and the noise is limited or low. They are very considerate of the neighbors around them. 5. She doesn‟t think it would be a problem because it would only help the women develop themselves. She is very happy with what they are doing by empowering themselves. She explained that Ôasa Taradi means “hardworking women” or “nonstop working women.” She also pointed out that she‟s glad the business isn‟t a shebeen so it doesn‟t attract the rowdy kids and doesn‟t promote violence. They just are busy doing their work. 6. The community benefits because they are able to buy the stuff.
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Peter‟s Ôasa Taradi Neighbor Interview #1: Elderly Lady
1: Yes she was familiar with the business as well as the ladies that work there. Her kids also were very familiar with the children that play there.
2: She felt that the business was a good thing mostly for the children. She didn‟t have any comments beyond the opinion that the business was a good influence on the children.
3: The greatest influence, in her opinion would be a positive one on the children. She hasn‟t seen any negative influences on the community, and didn‟t have any complaints.
4: She had absolutely no problems with the clientele or with the business itself.
5: She didn‟t thing that there would be any problems were the business to expand, and a greater quantity of people to frequent the neighborhood. She did, however, believe that the children could possibly learn from the example set by the hard working women there. It gives them a place to play, and she would like to see the children benefit from the spirit of the business.
6: Again, her main thought on the matter was the positive experience that the children might have if exposed to a greater influx of tourists from different cultures. There would also be more customers, and the neighborhood in general would benefit simply from the greater opportunity to generate income.
7: N/A
8: N/A
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Peter‟s Ôasa Taradi Neighbor Interview #2: Middle Aged Man
1: Yes, he is familiar with the business as well as the women who work there, in addition to the children that play there.
2: Simply put, he said the business was good, and that there were no problems that he had ever seen.
3: At one point, the ladies of Ôasa Taradi received a shipment of clothes from Germany. They then distributed all the clothes out to the community for the coming winter months. He therefore felt that the business had been a good influence on the community, and felt that they would always help out with whatever they could.
4: He did not feel that there were any problems with the people who visit the business, nor did he have any particular problems with the business itself.
5: The gentleman didn‟t feel that there would be any problems from an increased amount of people visiting the business.
6: With respect to tourists, the gentleman felt that there would indeed be some benefits that the community would see. He would like to meet new people, and he couldn‟t foresee any problems that might arise from a larger tourist clientele.
7: He couldn‟t think of any strengths/weaknesses of the top of his head.
8: He liked the idea of more jobs, and felt that that would be a beneficial thing to the people and the business alike. With respect to threats, he didn‟t feel that crime would be a problem at all. He explained what could be described as an informal neighborhood watch program. They all watch out for each other, and even if someone isn‟t home, a neighbor will phone the police if anything looks suspicious around the empty house.
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Peter‟s Ôasa Taradi Neighbor Interview #2: Middle Aged Lady
1: Yes, she was familiar with the business, and while she wasn‟t acquainted with the ladies who run it, she did know the cleaning lady. Her children are also familiar with the children who play there.
2: She had a good feeling about the place, although she can not afford any of the products made there.
3: The lady feels that every house is essentially on its own, with respect to economics, and couldn‟t see any instances where Ôasa Taradi influenced the community for better or for worse.
4: She had no complaints about either the clientele, or the business itself in general.
5: With respect to an increased number of people frequenting the neighborhood, she couldn‟t see any problems.
6: The lady didn‟t have any thoughts one way or the other about what sort of positive influence tourism may bring, however she admitted she couldn‟t see the future.
7: N/A
8: N/A
Appendix E: Tour Data
In order to asses the tourism industry of Windhoek in relation to Katutura we took five different tours, four with different commercial tourism agencies. From these interviews we were able to collect data about where each tour stopped and what they did or did not mention.
These tours allowed us to conclude that most tours did not stop by either of our businesses. Even though there are tour companies providing excursions into the suburb, our businesses did not benefit. We learned that Otjikaendu Den was not frequented because she was a food proprietor and the tours did not run at the lunch hour. We also determined that Penduka was visited by every tour guide. Because of this we feel that to offer Ôasa Taradi with one of the main tours would not be beneficial. The small business is not likely to fair well if forced to compete with
Penduka on the same tour.
It was because of these two conclusions that we first began to think of offering a meal tour to tourists so that they could visit Mama Melba‟s and Ôasa Taradi in the same tour while at the same time avoiding the large commitment of the longer tours.
Tour Spreadsheet
Victory City of Face to Face Women's Cardboard Windhoek Tours Movement Sense of Africa Box Manfred !Gaeb Mandla Karongee Katrina Garises Kurt Schlenther Ephraim Old Cemetary yes yes yes yes no Stopped? yes yes yes yes no no, but mentioned Mrs. Ôasa Taradi yes no Jutta Rohwer no no Stopped? yes no no no no GRIP yes yes no no no Stopped? yes yes no no no Penduka yes yes yes yes yes
Opportunities for Tourism in the Western Suburbs 105
no (but usually Stopped? yes yes does) yes yes Otjikaendu Den yes no no no no Stopped? yes no no no no Singles Market yes yes no yes yes Stopped? yes yes no yes yes Soweto Market yes yes yes yes yes no (we'd no (usually no (he doesn't already Stopped? yes no stops) like it) been) Kindergartens yes yes yes yes yes Stopped? yes no yes no no Shebeens yes no no yes no Stopped? yes no no yes no Home businesses no yes no yes no Stopped? no no no no no Khomasdal yes yes yes yes no Stopped? no no no no no Khomas mtns. no yes yes yes no Stopped? N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A Schools yes yes yes yes yes Stopped? no no no no no Victory Women's Movement no no yes no yes Stopped? no no yes no yes Table 5. Tour Spreadsheet
Appendix F: Menu for Otjikaendu Den
Menu for Otjikaendu Den Price (N$) Lasagne with Salad 35,00 Sirloin Steak with Chips & Salad 40,00 Otjikaendu Den Ribs with Rice and Veges 40,00 T-Bone Steak with Parsley, Potatoes Veges 40,00 Head/Goat or Sheep (Otjiuru Tjongombo Poo Tjondu) 30,00 Matangrara with Maize (Omatangara No Ruhere) Braai (lamb or pork chops, boerewors, chicken) 55,00 (per person)
Table 6. Menu for Otjikaendu Den
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Appendix F: Price List for Ôasa Taradi as of 19 April 2004
PRICE LIST FOR ÔASA TARADI 19 April 2004 Product Namibian $ Euro American $
TABLE LINEN table cloth L 380.00 47 $56 table cloth M 320.00 40 $47 table runner 320.00 40 $47 place mats 60.00 7 $9 napkins 32.00 4 $5 bibs 50.00 6 $7 egg warmer 25.00 3 $4 tea cosy 95.00 12 $14
KITCHEN/BATH towels S 70.00 9 $10 apron 160.00 20 $24 oven glove (1) 42.00 5 $6 oven glove pair 75.00 9 $11
CUSHIONS plain/filling 25.00 3 $4 appliqué 170.00 21 $25 African animal 160.00 20 $24 bock 180.00 23 $27 zebra 180.00 23 $27 3 turtles 180.00 23 $27 reptiles 180.00 23 $27
BAGS shopper 130.00 16 $19 CA shopper 150.00 20 $22 rucksack L 190.00 25 $28 rucksack S 150.00 18 $22 rucksack "rings" 170.00 22 $25 bag S 25.00 4 $4 bag M 45.00 6 $7 pencil case 65.00 8 $10 sport bag & 250.00 31 $37 gym bag/laundry 75.00 9 $11 Table 7. Price List for Ôasa Taradi
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Appendix G: Wet Toilet Pricing Estimates Pricing information for cisterns from Pupkewitz Megabuild - Pricing information for shelters from ROCLA Concrete
Plastic cistern Ceramic cistern Item Price Count Total Item Price Count Total Plastic cistern $310.00 1 $310.00 Ceramic cistern $500.92 1 $500.92 End plug with adapter $8.10 2 $16.20 End plug with adapter $8.10 2 $16.20 In-wall piping $39.45 3 $118.34 In-wall piping $39.45 3 $118.34 Tee fitting $5.60 1 $5.60 Tee fitting $5.60 1 $5.60 Door $450.00 2 $900.00 Door $450.00 2 $900.00 Sewage Piping installation per meter $300.00 1 $300.00 Sewage Piping installation $300.00 1 $300.00 Water Source Piping installation per meter $94.00 1 $94.00 Water Source Piping installation $94.00 1 $94.00 Total Cost $1,744.14 Total Cost $1,935.06
with 2 small concrete toilet with 2 small concrete toilet shelters shelters Item Price Count Total Item Price Count Total Concrete toilet shelter $1,500.00 1 $1,500.00 Concrete toilet shelter $1,500.00 1 $1,500.00 Total Cost $3,244.14 Total Cost $3,435.06
with large unitized bathroom with large unitized bathroom Item Price Count Total Item Price Count Total Concrete toilet shelter $3,400.00 1 $3,400.00 Concrete toilet shelter $3,400.00 1 $3,400.00 Total Cost $5,144.14 Total Cost $5,335.06 Table 8. Wet Toilet Price Quotes
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Appendix H: Price Quotes from J&L Thatching Co.
J&L Thatching price quotes Acquired from Johan Engels on 20/04/04
Tel: 290 2506 Fax: 290 2006
A) Thatch Roof Price Slasto Floor Price 3 X 3 m 7,300 3 X 3 m 1,350 3 X 4 m 8,900 3 X 4 m 1,800 4 X 4 m 11,100 4 X 4 m 2,400 4 X 5 m 13,800 4 X 5 m 3,000 4 X 6 m 14,900 4 X 6 m 3,600 5 X 5 m 15,400 5 X 5 m 3,750 5 X 6 m 17,100 5 X 6 m 4,500
B) Braai's (see basic braai's) Terra Cotta Bricks 8,600
C) Electricity under roof 1,450
D) Municipal Drawings 800
Prices do not include VAT Table 9. Price Quotes for J&L Thatching
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Appendix I: PERT Diagram for Otjikaendu Den
Figure 13. PERT Diagram for Otjikaendu Den
Appendix J: PERT Diagram for Ôasa Taradi
Figure 14. PERT Diagram for Ôasa Taradi
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Appendix K: Strengths-Weaknesses-Opportunities-Threats (SWOT)
Strengths resources or capabilities that develop competitive advantages
Weaknesses internal absence of strengths
Opportunities external catalyst that brings profit and growth
Threats external catalyst that hinders development or causes harm
SWOT MATRIX
Strenghts Weaknesses Opportunities S-O strategies W-O strategies Threats S-T strategies W-T strategies Table 10. SWOT Matrix
S-O Strategies are strategies that pursue the opportunities that are a good match to best utilize the strengths of the business.
W-O Strategies are strategies that overcome weaknesses to pursue opportunities.
S-T Strategies are strategies that use the businesses strengths to reduce its susceptibility to threats.
W-T Strategies are strategies that defend against weaknesses that make the business more vulnerable to the threats.
We used this SWOT study to characterize each factor that effected the businesses. The matrix helped us identify strategies that were beneficial to each business.
Internet Center for management and Business Administration, Inc. 1999-2004 QuickMBA.com.
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Appendix L: Program Evaluation and Review Technique
Purpose: To assist a project manager in taking on a large-scale project that requires coordinating a large number of activities with an organization or business.
How to Accomplish: Use of Microsoft Project to display the coordination of the activities on a project network map.
Case Study to Illustrate PERT
A construction manager is assigned a very important project with a deadline of 47 weeks. He planned out the activities necessary to carry out the course of the project and has estimated the duration of each task. Below is the activity list.
PERT Activity List
Activity Description Immediate Predecessors Estimated Duration A Excavate ___ 2 weeks B Lay foundation A 4 weeks C Put up rough wall B 10 weeks D Put up roof C 6 weeks E Install exterior plumbing C 4 weeks F Install interior plumbing E 5 weeks G Put up exterior siding D 7 weeks H Do exterior painting E,G 9 weeks I Do electrical work C 7 weeks J Put up wallboard F,I 8 weeks K Install flooring J 4 weeks L Do interior painting J 5 weeks M Install exterior fixtures H 2 weeks N Install interior fixtures K,L 6 weeks
*Immediate Predecessors activities that must be completed before the start of another activity (ex. Foundation must be laid before the rough wall is put up)
Information taken from Hillier & Hillier‟s Introduction to Management Science textbook (p. 323-329)
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Activity on Node Project Network
START
A
B
C
E I D
F G J
K L H N
M
FINISH
Pictured above is a flowchart that describes the sequence of activities necessary to complete the project at the focus of the PERT analysis. Each step that requires a preceding step to be completed is visually preceded in the diagram above. In this way one is able to view the whole process, and understand how each step interacts with every other step along the way.
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Appendix M: Katutura Lunch Tour Proposal
*** This is the proposal we distributed to the tour agencies who did not previously know the basis for our ideas.***
We are a group of three students from Worcester Polytechnic Institute in the USA who came to Windhoek to do research on tourism in Katutura. We originally started out with three businesses that we wanted to improve so that they would be prepared for an increased volume of tourists. Consequently, it turned out that one of our businesses was going to require a lot more time than we had to give, so we cut it loose. With the two businesses left, we decided to do something creative to not only develop their establishments, but also to bring them more business.
Otjikaendu Den is a restaurant run by Mama Melba that has recently been a mostly locally aimed business. Although she is very organized as a business woman and restaurant manager, she does not receive many tourists as a result of the limited tour times that run through Katutura. The tours we took through Windhoek ran at either 9am or 2pm and lasted for approximately three hours. Clearly, these times do not coincide with lunch time, so Mama Melba‟s culturally rich restaurant does not receive the attention it deserves. Through discussions with Mama Melba and her staff, we agreed that a lunch tour would be extremely beneficial to her business. Mama Melba wants to hire a cultural group to perform during these tours, so the tourists can really experience
Africa through traditional food, song and dance.
The second business we focused on was a group of women who create
Opportunities for Tourism in the Northern Suburbs 116 embroidered products like tablecloths, pillowcases, and potholders. They have an attractive product but an empty storefront. Tours do not stop by their shop, mainly because they were not previously ready for tourists, and also because Penduka is already a stop along most tours (Penduka is also a craftshop and a very successful one indeed).
We have made recommendations and taken steps to improve the storefront of Ôasa
Taradi to the point where we feel they are ready for a tour.
In combination with Mama Melba‟s lunch stop, the tour could end at Ôasa Taradi for some traditional African Souvenirs and some Damara Sweets made by the women there. We see the tour as being very attractive to those tourists that only have one day in
Windhoek and have activities in the morning and afternoon, with only a break for lunch time. Also, sometimes people are not interested in hearing the whole history of
Windhoek, and just want to experience the culture and meet the people of the community.
This tour is ideal for anyone that wants a true face to face tour. We hope that you consider this as a tour option for your tourist inquiries.
Itinerary
12:00 noon Depart tour company and head straight to Katutura 12:15pm Arrive at Mama Melba‟s for food and entertainment 1:15pm Depart Mama Melba‟s and head to Ôasa Taradi 1:30pm Shop around and socialize at Ôasa Taradi 2:00 – 2:30 (according to how long they shop) Arrive back at tour company
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Appendix N: Survey for Tourists and Tour Guides Katutura Lunch Tour
1. How would you describe the tour to another tourist?
2. Did you enjoy it? Why/why not?
3. Do you feel you were able to interact with the local culture?
4. What would you like to see improved at Otjikaendu Den, the culture group, or
Ôasa Taradi?
5. Did the quality of the food and the crafts meet with your expectations?
6. Did you purchase anything at Ôasa Taradi? Why/Why not?
7. Do you feel that the price of the tour was satisfactory?
8. Are there any improvements that you feel would better the tour?
9. Would you be interested to hear more or less of the history of Katutura during this
tour? Was it good to discuss the history during dinner, driving, etc.?
10. Do you feel ultimately that this tour is feasible?
11. Would you recommend this tour to a friend?
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Responses for Thursday 29 April, 2004 Tour through Cardboard Box
Tourist #1
1. A tour of Katutura seeing a market and eating great food
2. I enjoyed Melba‟s, the culture group and fat cakes, but not the tour not very
informative
3. Yes the culture group
4. Otjikaendu Den no improvements Culture group no improvements
Ôasa Taradi cheaper prices
5. Yes
6. No, prices too expensive
7. Yes, the price was very reasonable
8. The tour guide should have talked more instead of just in the beginning
9. More history would be good, but find stuff you could put in the tour to make it
really interesting- not just every day stuff
10. Feasible for us, but maybe not for them Melba‟s was the only great/interesting
part, tour guide needs to be more spicy
11. If the tour guide was more exciting, then yes
Opportunities for Tourism in the Northern Suburbs 119
Tourist #2
1. I would describe the tour as a quick run through Katutura to see some of the local
cultural highlights.
2. Overall I did enjoy it. The beginning of the tour before lunch was more
informative than the end. I would have liked to hear more about Soweto Market
and Ôasa Taradi and why we went to each.
3. At Otjikaendu Den we were, but I don‟t think we were anywhere else.
4. Otjikaendu Den- nothing.
Culture Group- they were great!
Ôasa Taradi- I liked the layout of the store but the prices were high.
5. The quality of the food was good and met my expectations. The crafts looked
good, but cost a lot.
6. I did purchase a set of napkins. I would have rather bought a set of placemats, but
they cost too much.
7. I do, especially because it was longer than the two hours I thought it would be.
8. Sometimes listening to every word the guide said as he was driving was difficult.
Maybe if he stopped and talked it would have been better.
9. I would be interested in hearing more history as I am generally interested in
history. We did not discuss the history during lunch, that would have been good
though.
10. Yes, it is feasible.
11. I would.
Opportunities for Tourism in the Northern Suburbs 120
Tourist #3
1. I would say that the tour was pretty relaxed and pleasant. We did not see a whole
lot but it still was enjoyable.
2. I did enjoy this tour. We got to see parts of the city that I was not very familiar
with, so it was an interesting learning experience.
3. Yes, we were able to interact with the local culture, especially at Mama Melba‟s.
We talked to Melba and the singers and dancers.
4. One thing that I would like to see changed about the first two is to have them be a
little more organized. Although it wasn‟t bad, I was a little unsure about what we
were supposed to be doing all the time. At Ôasa Taradi, we did not have much
contact with people, but I think that was fine because it let me shop without
feeling pressured.
5. Yes, I really enjoyed the food and the crafts were very nice. I actually bought a
pillow cover there.
6. I purchased a pillow cover there. I liked how it looked, but I thought it was a little
pricy at first (N$160), but since it was hand embroidered and looked very nice, I
bought it.
7. I think that N$150 is a reasonable price for the tour.
8. I think that seeing more sites would make the tour better. Otherwise it was quite
enjoyable.
9. I would like to hear more about the history. The tour guide did talk about this in
the beginning, but more discussion about this over lunch would be even better.
10. I believe this tour is feasible although seeing more things would make it much
Opportunities for Tourism in the Northern Suburbs 121
better.
11. If they had a lot of time, I would recommend this tour to a friend. However, if
they were pressed for time, I think that they could find something else where they
could get more out of their time.
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Appendix O: Price Comparison
In order to resolve this issue of high prices we recommend selling items such as napkins and placemats in sets of four. This is done commonly in the United States; one can buy items individually at a premium, or buy a set at a small discount. If Ôasa Taradi was able to sell their set items at a “Buy three and the fourth is free!” discount that didn‟t drop below their markup percentage, this would make it more reasonable for tourists to buy several items, and the women would still be making a profit, especially if it encourages more to be sold. They already do something similar to this with their oven gloves, whereby if one purchases a pair of them the price is less than buying two of them individually.
Example Price Comparison for Ôasa Taradi
Proposed price per Current Proposed piece Customer Current price for price for when savings price per set of set of bought per set of piece four four as set. four (Nam$) (Nam$) (Nam$) (Nam$) (Nam$) Napkins 32,00 128,00 96,00 24,00 32,00 Placemats 60,00 240,00 180,00 45,00 60,00 Table 112. Ôasa Taradi Example Price Comparison and Savings