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Media Monitoring on Urban Development in Namibia Media Monitoring on Urban Development in Namibia is a service provided by Development Workshop Namibia (DWN), a newly registered Namibian NGO with a focus on sustainable urban development and poverty reduction. DWN is part of a world-wide network of Development Workshop (DW) organisations with centres in Canada, Angola and France, and offices in Vietnam and Burkino Faso. It was founded in the 1970s by three Canadian architect students and has been funded by non-governmental organisations, private citizens, and national and international development organisations. In Namibia, DWN’s activities focus on urban related research, effective urban planning for the urban poor, solutions to informal settlements, water & sanitation, and projects specifically targeting disadvantaged segments of the urban youth. Through 40 years of engagement on urban issues mainly in Africa and Asia, the DW network of organisations has acquired significant institutional knowledge and capacity and is well integrated in regional and international networks. The Namibian media provide an important source of information on urban development processes in the country, highlighting current events, opportunities and challenges. The media further provide insight into the different views and perceptions of a variety of actors, be it from government, non- government, private sector, and individuals that reside in Namibia’s towns and settlements. It is therefore hoped that DWN’s Media Monitoring service will provide insights into those different views, with potential use for a variety of institutions and decision-makers that work in the urban environment in Namibia. The Media Monitoring service is currently provided on a monthly basis and monitors the following newspapers: The Namibian, Republikein, Namibian Sun, New Era, Windhoek Observer, Confidente, and Informante. Compiled by: The articles are grouped into following categories: Esleen Guriras & Alina Nambuli 1. Urban Planning, Land & Housing Edited by: Beat Weber 2. Urban Infrastructure and Services Produced by: 3. Livelihoods and Urban Economy Development Workshop Namibia 4. Environment & Human Health Address: The text of the news articles has not been altered and thus 18 Nachtigal Street PO Box 40723, Ausspannplatz reflects the opinion of the respective media outlets, and not Windhoek, Namibia that of DWN. We hope you find this service useful and 081 627 92 53 interesting. DWN is keen to improve the service and [email protected] welcomes suggestions and comments. Yours sincerely, With support from: Development Workshop Namibia Namibian Chamber of Environment 1 Index 1 URBAN PLANNING, LAND AND HOUSING ..............................................................................................4 1.1 Grootfontein residents threaten to close down municipality .............................................................. 4 1.2 House prices will remain depressed…shift to lower and middle price ................................................. 4 1.3 ‘Contractors are greedy’ .................................................................................................................... 5 1.4 First Lady disapproves high housing prices ......................................................................................... 6 1.5 House prices slow down as demand shifts.......................................................................................... 6 1.6 Drive to formalise informal settlements ............................................................................................. 7 1.7 Tsandi community receives houses .................................................................................................... 7 1.8 Flat owners fed up with body corporates ........................................................................................... 8 1.9 Keetmanshoop in cash crunch again .................................................................................................. 8 1.10 Katima settlement gets 180 houses ................................................................................................ 9 1.11 Property prices falling amid volatility ............................................................................................. 9 1.12 ‘FNB shares HPP housing vision’ ................................................................................................... 10 1.13 Rent bill to be tabled in April ........................................................................................................ 11 1.14 Re-thinking Our Urban Future ...................................................................................................... 11 1.15 Renting a shack in DRC ................................................................................................................. 12 1.16 CEO, councillors split Grootfontein residents ................................................................................ 13 1.17 No more mud houses in Katima, says mayor ................................................................................ 14 1.18 'Uninhabitable' mass houses demolished ..................................................................................... 15 1.19 Swakop demolishes 90 mass houses due to poor workmanship .................................................... 15 1.20 No quality controls done on demolished Swakop houses .............................................................. 16 1.21 Poverty, landlessness dampen independence celebrations ........................................................... 16 1.22 Grotes soek grond by Okakarara: Verkooptransaksie deur private verdrag ................................... 17 1.23 New twist in Keetmans land saga ................................................................................................. 18 1.24 Rade se boeke 'n gemors: Onvoldoende dokumente ingedien ...................................................... 19 1.25 Dorpsraad ontken nepotisme: kernfunksies word verander .......................................................... 20 1.26 City Police dismantle illegal 7de Laan shacks ................................................................................ 21 1.27 N$419k required for a house ........................................................................................................ 22 1.28 Shack demolitions 'inhumane' ...................................................................................................... 22 1.29 City ordered to stop removing 7de Laan shacks ............................................................................ 23 1.30 Mass Housing under water ........................................................................................................... 24 2 URBAN INFRASTRUCTURE AND SERVICES ............................................................................................. 26 2.1 Water scarcity not ended by rise in dam levels ................................................................................. 26 2.2 Windhoek residents urged to register solar installations .................................................................. 26 2.3 Firefighting tanks for three settlements ........................................................................................... 27 2.4 Water crisis persists ......................................................................................................................... 27 2.5 Keetmans to address Ileni challenges ............................................................................................... 28 2.6 Hospital dumps medical waste at public site .................................................................................... 28 2.7 Walvis residents irked by system failure ........................................................................................... 29 2.8 Roads swept away by heavy rains .................................................................................................... 30 2.9 Catchment pond poses risk to residents ........................................................................................... 30 2.10 Govt called to act on sanitation .................................................................................................... 31 2.11 Govt neglects providing sanitation ............................................................................................... 31 2 2.12 Unseemly conditions .................................................................................................................... 32 2.13 Fresh water, sanitation far better ................................................................................................. 32 3 LIVELIHOODS AND URBAN ECONOMY ................................................................................................. 34 3.1 Maize meal prices decrease ............................................................................................................. 34 3.2 Omusati business expo launched ..................................................................................................... 34 3.3 Lovingly Crafted ............................................................................................................................... 35 3.4 Proud Business Woman ................................................................................................................... 35 4 ENVIRONMENT & HUMAN HEALTH ..................................................................................................