National News

Martin Endjala The Gibeon Village Council is reactivating the Build-Together programme, which will provide affordable houses to low- and middle-income families. The village's acting chief executive officer, Pederius Tjihoreko, confirmed this to the Windhoek Observer on Wednesday. “The programme is targeting families with a combined income of N$3 000 per month to allow an equal opportunity to acquire serviced land and affordable houses,” he said. The established names on the 2012/2013 list, consisting of about 32 beneficiaries, have until 15 August to submit all necessary documents. “The council requests that all 32 individuals listed resubmit their documents and verify the…

Hertta-Maria Amutenja The Namibian Competition Commission (NaCC) has issued a final notice to the City of Windhoek (CoW) regarding complaints from residents and pending information submissions. This is following a meeting with the Katutura Residents Committee (KRC) on 12 July. The KRC had earlier lodged complaints against the CoW’s conduct, especially around pricing issues. The commission acknowledged the complaints and noted that, despite a prior commitment to provide an update earlier in May, they are awaiting a submission from CoW. "The City of Windhoek has been availed a final opportunity to submit the information requested in order to assist the…

Niël Terblanché The world's largest floating book fair, has attracted more than 25 000 visitors within the first week of being moored at the Port of Walvis Bay. The vessel, which opened to the public on 5 July, offers a diverse selection of more than 5 000 book titles and hosts numerous events catering to a wide range of audiences. People traveled as far as Zimbabwe and Botswana to experience the floating book fair. Throughout the week, Logos Hope has hosted a variety of events for children, teenagers, youth, women, and parents. Other events included the ‘Crew for a Day’…

Niël Terblanché Namibia has positioned itself at the forefront of digital innovation and cybersecurity with the launch of two significant events. The country is simultaneously hosting the eighth National ICT Summit and the International Cybersecurity Conference and Exhibition 2024. The hosting of both events is a demonstration of Namibia’s commitment to embracing digital transformation and bolstering cybersecurity measures. The eighth National ICT Summit, officially launched by the Minister of Information and Communication Technology, Emma Theofelus, is set to take place from September 9 to 11. The summit, themed "Building Resilience to 'Adapt or Die' in the Era of Digital Transformation…

Martin Endjala About 714 landless residents of Walvis Bay on Tuesday applied for land with the municipality to purchase Portion 23 of Farm 37. This is the second time that residents have attempted to apply for land in masses at Walvis Bay. In 2015, over 10 000 residents applied for land at Walvis Bay and Swakopmund under the mass land application that was led by the Affirmative Repositioning (AR) movement. A group of residents known as Walvis Bay Backyard Tenants led Tuesday's group. The group leader, Festus Immanuel, explained that the residents who applied for land on Tuesday are those…

Niël Terblanché Over 1.6 million people in Namibia are eligible to vote. This figure is based on the 2023 Census data, with preliminary results released on 13 March. The data includes Namibians who were 17 years old by the Census reference night on 24 September 2023, as well as all individuals who were 18 years and older on that night. Alex Shimuafeni, Namibia's Statistician-General and Chief Executive Officer of the Namibia Statistics Agency (NSA), described the statement as showcasing the estimated number of eligible voters based on the Census figures. The NSA released two sets of figures: Namibians aged 18…

Niël Terblanché The growing number of illegal taxis in Namibia has raised significant concerns among authorities, prompting the Ministry of Works and Transport to collaborate with stakeholders on improving the taxi registration system. The initiative aims to address the root causes of illegal taxi operations and streamline the process of obtaining permits. The ministry’s Deputy Director of Transportation Regulation, Damien Mabengano, pointed out that the complexity of the current system contributes to the rise of illegal taxis. "When the system is complex, people will not go through the proper channels. They will try to bypass the system and drive the…

Martin Endjala Namwater will construct a purification plant extension in Oshakati. The company’s chief strategy and corporate affairs officer, Kadiva Hamutumwa, said this is due to the demand for water in the town. “We need another purification plant because the demand for water supply has risen and surpassed our ability with the current purification plant,” she said. She said the new capacity will increase its existing production, currently at 40 000 cubic metres per day, to 90 000 cubic metres per day. Last week, Namwater put out a notice inviting bids for the construction contract for the purification plant extension…

Niël Terblanché The Office of the Labour Commissioner has embarked on a comprehensive Business Process Re-engineering (BPR) initiative aimed at enhancing its service delivery and addressing longstanding challenges in labour dispute resolution. This was announced during a stakeholder engagement session held to solicit input and identify bottlenecks hindering efficient service delivery. The deputy minister of labour, industrial relations and employment creation, Hafeni Ndemula, highlighted the importance of transforming labour dispute prevention and resolution mechanisms. Ndemula acknowledged the successes so far but stated that there are still significant shortcomings that require attention. "It would be unwise to ignore the fact that,…