Observer

6064 Posts
East wind causes scorching weather

East wind causes scorching weather

Niël Terblanché Temperatures as high as 30 degrees Celsius have been measured in towns of Namibia’s central and southern coastal areas on Thursday as the first real east wind conditions descended from highlands in the interior. Motorists travelling between the main coastal towns had to take caution as dust clouds enveloped large areas and brought visibility on the road, causing possible hazardous driving conditions. Wind speeds as high as 40 kilometres per hour have been reported along the coast while dust clouds enveloped the neighbourhoods facing the Namib Desert. East weather or bergwind conditions are caused by air moving down…
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Banking customers urged to amp up security

Banking customers urged to amp up security

Staff Reporter Vigilance against fraudster tricks and scams remains one of the most effective defences to curb theft and fraud. International cybersecurity experts, including the United States-based Abnormal Security, have observed that Business Email Compromise (BEC) attacks increased by 81 percent in 2022 and 175 percent over the past two years. Bank Windhoek’s Manager of Forensic Services, Johnny Truter said that BEC is an advanced phishing scam that impersonates people, organisations, or entities the victim knows. “It works by manipulating email addresses, so the sender appears legitimate. The most common victims of BEC are companies that use online transfers to…
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Namibia’s current repo rate is less restrictive than others

Namibia’s current repo rate is less restrictive than others

Martin Endjala The real repo rate in Namibia is currently at 1.45 percent and is deemed to be less restrictive compared to real central bank policy rates in other emerging markets. Economist, Theo Klein, told this publication that the real repo rate in Namibia has been positive since April 2023 because the monetary policy has been restrictive for the last two and a half months. “Due to the lag effect of monetary policy, the cumulative 300bps hikes from December 2021 to December 2022 have not had an impact on the real economy as yet,” said Klein. He said further rate…
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Namibia will not have load shedding

Namibia will not have load shedding

Niël Terblanché Sound policy and a regime of contingency plans will prevent Namibians from ever having to deal with large-scale load shedding, NamPower’s Senior Manager in Energy Trading, Paulina Iyambo said. Iyambo was speaking at a panel discussion when she said that the country does not face an energy apocalypse despite the misgivings of some people. The panel discussion, hosted by the Windhoek Observer included Rojas Manyame, the General Manager of Regulation at the Electricity Control Board and Harald Schutt, an Energy Consultant. The discussion was part of a series of monthly panel discussions on Namibia’s security of electricity supply.…
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Kapofi admits that some veterans are suffering….promises to do better

Kapofi admits that some veterans are suffering….promises to do better

Stefanus Nashama Defence and Veteran Affairs Minister, Frans Kapofi has admitted that a number of war veterans are still languishing in poverty as their status is yet to be recognized by the government. Kapofi, in an exclusive interview with this publication said that war veterans living in challenging conditions will be attended to by the government, but that it may time some time, as the government has many other responsibilities to attend to. “We therefore cannot finish all veteran claims in one go. The government will assist, but if what the government is offering is not enough for them, then…
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AR’s Union seeking permission to represent police officers

AR’s Union seeking permission to represent police officers

Stefanus Nashama The newly established Revolutionary Union (RU), belonging to the Affirmative Reposition movement wants to recruit members of the Namibian Police Force and represent them in disciplinary proceedings. The union, on Monday, wrote to the Namibian Police Inspector-General, Lieutenant General Joseph Shikongo, seeking an audience with him in his office to ask him for permission to recruit officers as members of the union. The union, in their letter, informed Shikongo that it plans to solely represent uniformed men and women during disciplinary hearings and not as a bargaining unit for benefits. According to the RU, it has conducted informal…
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Former prisoner demands N$75 million from govt….claims unlawful incarceration

Former prisoner demands N$75 million from govt….claims unlawful incarceration

Hertta-Maria Amutenja Kain McNab, a former prisoner, is demanding N$75 015 000 from the Ministry of Home Affairs, Safety and Security on grounds that he was incarcerated illegally for three years, when he was legible for release on parole. McNab was sentenced to a 28-year prison term in August 1999 after he and his co-accused, Tuhafeni Helmuth Hamwaama shot dead the 44-year-old Martin Andreas, a Coca-Cola truck driver, in his home in Grootfontein in 1996. They were found guilty of murder and robbery. However, he claims he was granted automatic remission for nine years and four months meaning he was…
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Credit decisions must be taken locally

Credit decisions must be taken locally

Martin Endjala The Bank of Namibia wants credit decisions taken in Namibia in order to ensure a banking sector system that works for the people of the country. Johannes !Gawaxab, the Governor of the Bank of Namibia made the statement following a courtesy meeting with President Hage Geingob at State House on Tuesday. The visit to the State House was to provide the Head of State with the BoN’s annual briefing on issues of economic concern. “We want a banking sector system that works for Namibia. We want decision-making to be centralised and happening in Namibia,” !Gawaxab said. He stated…
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Quality of statistics is not guaranteed in Namibia

Quality of statistics is not guaranteed in Namibia

Hertta-Maria Amutenja The quality of data is not guaranteed in Namibia because such information is not always compiled for statistical purposes. The representative of the United Nations Population Fund in Namibia (UNFPA) in Namibia, Gift Malunga made the statement at the launch of the National Strategy for the Development of Statistics (NSDS) this week. “In Namibia, like in many other countries, inter-agency access to data from administrative and official records is inconsistent and the quality of data is not guaranteed because it is not always compiled for statistical purposes. Currently, the process of data sharing between government entities is not…
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SMEs are the catalyst for economic growth

SMEs are the catalyst for economic growth

Martin Endjala Small and Medium Enterprises play an important role in the country’s economic stability and should receive more support to enable such businesses to keep contributing to job creation in Namibia, given the high unemployment rate. This is according to First National Bank of Namibia (FNB) Head of Business Banking, Tomas lindji. He says SMEs need support to enable them to help with the country’s economic recovery efforts. He noted that small businesses fulfill a vital function and therefore, a move to support them is a move to support the economic growth of the country. He however stressed that…
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