Tujoromajo Kasuto
THE Ministry Of Sport, Youth & National Service, Agnes Tjongarero says the National Youth Service’s (NYS) the 10 board members were appointed procedurally, despite their ages ranging above the limit of 35 years, which is the cut-off for youth.
In Namibia the age group of between 16 and 35 are considered youth.
The Popular Democratic Movement recently had to remove their Secretary General and his deputy after they turned over 35 years.
She further said they came into power when the positions were advertised and then were shortlisted. The minister says she does not have all the information of how many youth applied to determine whether they were really left out.
She also claimed ignorance about the recruitment process, as she was not on the panel and also did not direct questions to the Ministry of Public Enterprise, who was in charge of the recruitment process for clarity on the recruitment process.
The youth minister however, admitted that there are youth who can take up leadership positions, certain sectors like correctional services, but others according to her require “many years of experience”.
About the National Youth Service board appointment, Tjongarero said the requirement and criteria to fill these positions were paramount.
The minister was clarifying these issues when social media went viral and condemned the appointment procedure of the board members, saying the board did not include the youth and questioning how the government intends to empower young people if they are not considered for the positions meant for them.
Questions sent to the Minister of Public Enterprise regarding the appointment criteria for the ten board members were not answered by the time of publishing.
The board is chaired by Emmerentia Leonard, who is a senior lecturer in the Department of Psychology and Social Work at the University of Namibia.
Leonard serves on various boards of public enterprises and not-for-profit organisations and is retained as the Chair of the Board. She holds a BA (Social Work) and an MA in Development Studies.
Jacob Hamutenya is the Deputy Chairperson and is the only youth on the board.
He holds a fulltime position as the Regional Manager at the Agro-Marketing And Trade Agency AMTA and brings on board agricultural expertise and youthful experience having been involved in the agricultural sector for more than 8 years.
Hamutenya is very instrumental in advocating for agricultural value addition and market access for local produce under the National Growth at Home Strategy.
He holds a BSc. (Hons.) Degree in Agricultural Science, and a MBA in Natural Resource Management. He serves on the NTA Skills Committee and National Horticulture Advisory Committee.
Another appointee is Marie Nainda, who is a Police Officer with over 29 years of service in the Namibian Police. She is currently the Deputy-Inspector General for Administration at the National Headquarters and holds a Master Degree in International Relations & Diplomacy Management, an LLB Degree and a National Diploma in Police Science.
Brigadier General Willem Shigwedha, another member, is a Military Officer with 31 years experience in military training and operations in the Namibian Defence Force.
He holds qualifications in Security and Military Science, Diploma in Political Science and Management and has served in various capacities in the military. Brigadier General Shigwedha is also an expert in the field of human resources having served at senior management levels in the banking sector.
He is currently a Deputy Chief Staff Joint Operations at the Defence Headquarters, Ministry of Defence and Veterans Affairs.
Board appointee Barbara Dreyer has served on various boards both in the public and private sector. She is a Human Resource expert, who holds a BA(Hons.) Degree and an MBA specializing in ethical decision-making in State-Owned Enterprises. She is currently employed as a Director Payment and Settlement Systems at the Bank of Namibia.
Rino Muranda is a seasoned Media and Public Relations Practitioner with over 24 years experience in various sectors and currently leads the Marketing and Communication team at Agribank.
He is a registered Chartered Public Relations Practitioner with the Public Relations Institute of Southern African (PRISA) and serves as a trustee of Dundee Precious Metals Tsumeb Community Trust. He holds a Bachelor of Arts Degree in Media Studies.
Nguviljita Zatjirua brings on board over 22 years of corporate financial management and governance experience. She has served in various senior financial roles in the banking sector in commercial as well as the public sector. She is currently employed as a Senior Manager: Finance at NiPAM. She holds an MBA specialising in Corporate Finance and Strategy and a Bachelor of Commerce Degree.
Tobias Nambala, is currently the Acting Chief Operations Officer (COO) and substantively General Manager for TVET Regulations at Namibia ‘Training Authority (NTA).
He has served on numerous boards in both State-Owned Enterprises and the Private sector, including serving as chairperson of the Walvis Bay Council Management Committee. He holds a MBA Degree and a Bachelor of Business Administration (BBA) Degree in Economics.
Escher Luanda is a Governance and Ethics Practitioner with over 10 years experience in the financial/pension fund sector. He is a member of the Committee responsible for Investing in South Africa (CRISA) and serves on the Advisory Board of Business Ethics Network Africa.
He is currently the Company Secretary and Head of Ethics at GIPF. He has served on various boards in aviation, insurance and NPO sectors. He is an Admitted Legal Practitioner of the High Court of Namibia, Certified Ethics Officer, and Integrated Reporting Practitioner and fellow of the Mauritius Institute of Directors. He holds the following qualifications: MBL, LLB (Hons), B.Juris degrees and Postgraduate Diploma in Compliance.
Last but not least is Felix Musulcubili, who is the Commissioner of the National Youth Service and is a member of the Board in an ex-officio capacity. He has served in various senior Government roles serving as an executive in a commercial public enterprise.
He holds the following qualifications: LLD, LLM, LLB, Bachelor of Labour Relations Management, Post Graduate Diploma in Labour Law, National Diploma in Police Science and Senior Management Programme (SMP).
