Featured – Page 17 – Windhoek Observer

05 Aug

The slow death of our towns: Namibia’s local authorities in crisis

Editorial, Featured, Opinions

As Namibia heads toward the local authority elections this November, one cannot help but look around our towns and villages and ask: What has become of us? The decay is not only physical but moral, institutional, and systemic. Our local authorities, which should be the engines of development and custodians of urban dignity, have instead become symbols of mismanagement, neglect, and corruption. What we are witnessing is not just decline; it is the slow, painful death of our towns, one municipality at a time. From Dreams of Housing to Settlements of Despair Drive into almost any Namibian town today, and the first…

05 Aug

Resettled farmers receive commercial land in Omaheke

Featured, Observer Money

Allexer Namundjembo Twenty-two commercial farmers received their farming units during a handover ceremony held last week in the Omaheke Region. The event marked the 12th induction ceremony for resettled farmers under the national resettlement programme. Minister of agriculture, fisheries, water, and land reform, Inge Zaamwani, said the farmers had undergone training before taking ownership of the units. She explained that the 22 units were advertised during three periods: March to May 2023, July 2023, and October to December 2024. “The ministry has planned to provide a platform for the newly resettled commercial farmers, who have been allocated land on 13…

05 Aug

Wantenaar sets new national swimming record

Featured, Sports

Erasmus Shalihaxwe Namibian swimmer Ronan Wantenaar has set a new national record in the 50 m breaststroke, clocking 26.85 seconds at the ongoing 2025 World Aquatic Championship in Singapore. He broke his previous national record of 27.05 seconds. Namibia Aquatic Sports Federation president Riaan Steyn congratulated Wantenaar, saying his performance put Namibia on the international swimming map. “Ronan Wantenaar has made a major splash in the world of competitive swimming by setting a new national record in the 50 m breaststroke at the 2025 World Aquatic Championships in Singapore. Currently ranked 10th in the world for the 50m breaststroke, Wantenaar’s…

04 Aug

Namibia, wake up: The reparations fight is your fight too

Editorial, Featured, Opinions

Much is being said about the reparation talks between Namibia and Germany. To the casual observer, it might seem as though the process has come a long way. After all, Germany has admitted wrongdoing and even recognized the atrocities committed against the Nama and Ovaherero people as genocide. Some consider this progress. But let’s be honest, it is not. It is a carefully worded statement, a hollow concession designed to appease rather than truly atone.What happened in Namibia between 1904 and 1908 was genocide, by every moral and legal definition. Tens of thousands of Nama and Ovaherero were slaughtered, driven…

04 Aug

President calls for consistent sports funding

Featured, Sportssports funding

Erasmus Shalihaxwe President Netumbo Nandi-Ndaitwah has urged the business community to provide long-term support to national sports teams for national sports teams instead of one-off donations. She made the appeal on Saturday evening during a fundraising gala dinner for the Brave Warriors, the national football team. “The support for national teams should not only be a one-off but a joint commitment to ensure Namibia excels on all platforms. The Federation of International Football Association (FIFA), in particular, faces challenges that require consistent effort, unwavering dedication, and substantial resources, she stated. The Brave Warriors are four matches away from a possible…

01 Aug

It’s Time to Ask the Hard Questions About Doing Business in Namibia

Editorial, Featured, Opinions

President Netumbo Nandi-Ndaitwah’s decision to integrate Trade into the Ministry of International Relations deserves praise. It is a smart move, one that aligns Namibia’s foreign policy with the urgent need to attract investment. It tells the world that Namibia is ready to do business. But the bigger question is, how easy is it to actually do business here? The truth is, Namibia offers plenty of opportunities. We have political stability, rich natural resources, and a location that opens doors to regional markets. On paper, we look attractive. Yet, the reality on the ground often tells a different story. Investors quickly…

31 Jul

Stars replace Tanzanian club with Maniema Union

Featured, Sports

Erasmus Shalihaxwe African Stars Football Club, reigning Namibia Premier League champions, will host a four-team pre-season tournament at Independence Stadium in Windhoek from 24 to 26 August 2025. The tournament will prepare the club for its participation in the Confederation of African Football (CAF) Champions League. On Thursday, African Stars announced that Young African Football Club from Tanzania had withdrawn from the tournament and will be replaced by AS Maniema Union from the Democratic Republic of Congo. “African Stars FC would like to inform our fans and stakeholders that Young Africans FC from Tanzania has withdrawn from the upcoming Pre-Season…

31 Jul

Clerks urged to back SADC parliament shift

Africa / World, Featured

Moses Magadza The chairperson of the committee of clerks and secretaries general of the SADC Parliamentary Forum (SADC PF), Xolile George, has highlighted the role of clerks and secretaries of national parliaments in transforming the forum into a fully fledged SADC regional parliament. George, who is the clerk of the Parliament of South Africa, did this on Tuesday when he officially opened a statutory meeting of the Committee under the theme “Ensuring Operational Continuity Post Elections in SADC Member States.” “We gather here as a special crop of clerks and secretaries to our national parliaments with a special call and…

31 Jul

When Justice Feels Like Oppression: The Hidden Dangers of Blind Law Enforcement

Editorial, Featured, Opinions

The recent viral video of a deputy sheriff demolishing the home of a black woman has shaken Namibia to its core. Though the action was legally mandated, the optics were devastating: a white man enforcing the destruction of a black woman’s property. In a country still healing from a brutal racial past, such images carry weight far beyond the immediate event. They awaken memories many wish to forget, but as history teaches us, memory does not fade simply because we want it to. Yes, the deputy sheriff acted under a court order, he was doing his job. But there is…

29 Jul

The youth fund: Dead on arrival?

Editorial, Featured, Opinions

The Development Bank of Namibia (DBN) recently launched the Youth Fund, a loan scheme meant to empower young Namibians to start businesses and create economic opportunities. Yet, the Fund sits idle, with “little to no uptake” from the very demographic it seeks to uplift. This scenario is both perplexing and revealing, pointing to deeper systemic flaws in how youth-targeted economic interventions are conceptualised and implemented in Namibia. The Youth Fund’s poor performance raises the fundamental question: was it designed with the realities of young Namibians in mind? Debt, particularly in the context of a weak job market and an unforgiving…