Page 970 – News Stand

06 Nov

NSFAF put the cart before the horse

info_e12wt4csNational NewsNSFAF

NSFAF is now cutting back from offering 32,000 laptops for tertiary education students to 10,000. The question begs about why a needs assessment was not done BEFORE the tender for the higher number of laptops was offered? Why did we need all of the noise about the needs of online education for students when the estimate of usage was a thumb suck? We all recall that pandemic prevention rules made remote education a priority. We quickly realized our entire system was not suited for this reality. With little time to get things moving, the mandate for off campus classes became…

06 Nov

NSFAF faces fresh allegations …as minister distances herself

info_e12wt4csObserver MoneyHigher Education minister, Itah Kandji-Murangi, NSFAF

Helena Johannes Higher Education minister, Itah Kandji-Murangi has distanced her office from renewed problems at the trouble-prone, Namibia Student Financial Assistance Fund (NSFAF) amid discrimination and favoritism allegations against Acting Chief Executive Officer (CEO) Kennedy Kandume. “I am quite confident that the Board shall deal with whatever grievances are alleged against the CEO to the satisfaction of both parties without the involvement of my office,” said Murangi. She said that a competent Board of Directors has been appointed to drive the strategic focus of the institution and to deal with such concerns. The Minister’s comments come less than three months…

06 Nov

NUNW attacks ‘foreign’ companies

info_e12wt4csObserver MoneyCovid-19, National Union of Namibia (NUNW), president Hage Geingob, SWAPO

Helena Johannes The National Union of Namibia (NUNW) has accused foreign companies operating in Namibia for deliberately firing workers under the guise of negative impacts from COVID-19 and poor economic conditions. They allege that this has been done to sabotage the ruling Swapo party. This comes as Swapo president Hage Geingob last month accused white Namibians of voting against the ruling party when Swapo is the author of the reconciliation policy that kept them wealthy and safe at independence. The NUNW statement was made on Wednesday when it announced its backing of the ruling party ahead of the upcoming regional…

05 Nov

Young politicians must cut their teeth

info_e12wt4csNational NewsHafeni Mafita, PDM

The recent decision by the PDM to expel their candidate for the John Pandeni constituency, Hafeni Mafita, is quite telling. The young politician posted on social media, “I hate whites.” These are ugly words. However, this is the first in a line of faux pas, gaffs, and immature moves by the plethora of younger candidates now gracing Namibia’s political scene. Let the initial response to these errors be more supportive than punitive. Mafita’s real violation is not hating whites but posting it online. And in saying it on social media, he put his immature foot deeply in his own mouth.…

05 Nov

When the Namibian Police Force goes shopping

info_e12wt4csUncategorisedNamibian Police Force

Tuhafeni Helao In a literal sense, the word ‘shopping’ means to buy or procure something needed to keep the person or organisation going. Shopping signifies a practical procurement of essential items, whether groceries or other commodities, necessary to sustain the household or organisation. Essentially, meticulous shopping must be made within the means and capabilities of the household livelihood or organisation operations. However, before deciding on ‘shopping list’ it is imperative to determine the available budget against the items to be bought or procured, and the necessity of such items in the household or organisational context. This is the general theory…

05 Nov

Eos Capital partners in large-scale Kelp farm

info_e12wt4csUncategorisedClimate Fund Managers, Climate Fund Managers (CFM), Eos Capital, Kelp Blue

Staff Writer Climate Fund Managers (CFM) and Eos Capital have announced a partnership between Climate Investor Two (managed by Climate Fund Managers), Kelp Blue and the Namibia Infrastructure Development and Investment Fund (NIDIF), managed by Eos Capital, for the commercial development of the world’s first large-scale kelp farm. Investment of approximately N$990 million (USD 60 million) will be required over a five-year period. This will be funded by both international and local Namibian sources through CI2 and NIDIF, pending investment approvals. Kelp Blue will seek the necessary Namibian regulatory approvals and will liaise closely with local authorities. Kelp Blue will…

05 Nov

Northern referral hospital still in planning phase…as Govt moots new Windhoek hospital

info_e12wt4csObserver MoneyKalumbi Shangula, Minister of Health and Social Services

Andrew Kathindi There is still no movement on the construction of the northern referral hospital, three years on after government mooted the idea, Minister of Health and Social Services, Kalumbi Shangula has revealed. The hospital which was set to be built in the Oshana region, was meant to cater to six other nearby northern regions, including Omusati, Ohangwena, Oshikoto, Kunene and part of Kavango West. Plans for the Northern Academic Referral Hospital were announced by former Health Minister Bernard Haufiku in 2017. “It has not been abandoned. It is still in the planning stage. It remains part of the overall…

05 Nov

Govt considers ending fishing quota auctions

info_e12wt4csObserver MoneyMinistry of Fisheries and Marine Resources

Andrew Kathindi The Ministry of Fisheries and Marine Resources has hinted that it may do away with the auctioning of its governmental fishing quotas after it managed to only raise a paltry N$8.4 million in August. Fisheries Executive Director, Annely Haiphene said that the ministry was unsure if and when there will be a next round of auction for the government’s fishing quotas, which was expected to commence this month. “For now, we have not decided whether we are still going to go on with auction or not. It was experimental, for the first time and now we are thinking…

04 Nov

The Auditor-General needs teeth

info_e12wt4csNational NewsAuditor General, Auditor-General of Namibia (AGN)

The Auditor-General of Namibia (AGN) needs more than just a bark; the holder of that office needs the ability to take a deep, nasty bite. To do that, he needs legislative and regulatory teeth. The Act governing this office must be strengthened. We need our AGN to be able to subpoena records. The AGN must be able to lay charges with the Prosecutor General. The Auditor-General should have the ability (with a judge’s warrant) to have people locked up until they comply with the law for reporting, providing accurate records, and allowing access to registered AGN personnel. This is a…

04 Nov

Post-Covid-19 business success is not about navigating the new normal, it’s about defining it

info_e12wt4csUncategorisedCovid-19, FNB

Sam Ikela Apart from the obvious impact of months of lockdown regulations on business turnover and profitability, one of the biggest challenges that faced organisations during the first few months of Covid-19 was a complete lack of data. The world had never faced a situation quite like this, and given the significant dependence of businesses on data for strategy development and decision making, most companies found themselves having to ‘shoot from the hip’ given that there was now a structural break in their data flows, and they had no access to any particularly relevant customer, industry or economic data to…