Windhoek Observer – Page 31 – Windhoek Observer

16 Feb

UN maps out path to 26 000 new jobs

Observer Money

Allexer Namundjembo A United Nations (UN) report launched in Windhoek has identified more than US$900 million in diversification opportunities and the potential to create over 26 000 jobs through value addition and industrial expansion. The report was unveiled by United Nations Conference on Trade and Development secretary general Rebeca Grynspan during her official visit to Namibia. The event took place at the Mövenpick–Mercure Hotel and was organised with the National Planning Commission (NPC). It was attended by government officials, private sector representatives, academia, civil society and UN agencies. According to a statement issued at the launch, the Rapid Assessment for…

16 Feb

EY report haunts TransNamib executives

Main, National News

Renthia Kaimbi TransNamib Limited Holdings has suspended two senior executives with immediate effect following a forensic investigation into alleged property mismanagement, disposal irregularities and statutory breaches. Executive for human capital Webster Gonzo and executive for properties Alynsia Platt were placed on precautionary suspension on Friday by the TransNamib board. Minister of Works and Transport Veikko Nekundi confirmed that he approved the decision. The suspensions follow a forensic probe commissioned into the conduct of the executives. The board has resolved that disciplinary proceedings will now follow. Two days before the suspensions, the company acknowledged that an internal investigation was under way.…

13 Feb

Venaani accuses government of ‘killing’ Mwilima

National News

Renthia Kaimbi Popular Democratic Movement (PDM) leader McHenry Venaani says the government must take blame for the death of former Democratic Turnhalle Alliance (DTA) member of parliament and Caprivi high treason convict Geoffrey Mwilima. Mwilima died in Windhoek on Thursday at the age of 70. He was receiving treatment at Lady Pohamba Private Hospital. He had been battling diabetes while in prison. Mwilima was released on 24 December on remission after serving part of a 15-year sentence that began in December 2015. Remission is the reduction or cancellation of the remainder of a prison sentence after a person has served…

13 Feb

Namibia’s maritime legislation stuck in another century

National News

Renthia Kaimbi Namibia’s maritime laws are outdated and could undermine the country’s offshore oil and gas ambitions, industry bodies and legal experts say. This week, minister of works and transport Veikko Nekundi tabled notice in Parliament for Namibia to adopt the amended protocols of the Inter-Governmental Standing Committee on Shipping. The 2006 instrument seeks to transform the regional body into a maritime organisation aligned with African Union frameworks. If ratified, Namibia will gain voting rights in the organisation’s Assembly. Namibian ports and logistics firms will also access associate membership, allowing them to take part in regional freight negotiations and strategy…

13 Feb

Muteka pushes for safer parks in Windhoek West

National News

Allexer Namundjembo Windhoek West Constituency councillor Emma Muteka wants public parks in her constituency to be safe, clean and accessible. She met Windhoek mayor Sakarias Uunona on Wednesday to discuss park safety, student transport, informal trading and proposed changes to municipal by-laws. Muteka said conditions in some parks have declined and called for better maintenance and oversight. Both sides agreed to improve cooperation between the city and the constituency office to address the issue. Student transport was also discussed. Muteka said university students who rely on public buses face daily challenges, especially those attending the University of Namibia (Unam) and…

13 Feb

Karibib Town Council denies claims of marble waste dumping

National News

Justicia Shipena Karibib Town Council has rejected claims that marble dust and related by-products distributed in the town contain asbestos fibres. This follows a report circulating this week alleging that marble mining and processing waste has been illegally dumped across Karibib and that some of the dust contains asbestos fibres that pose long-term health risks to residents. On Thursday, Karibib Town Council Chief Executive Officer Tangeni Enkono said independent laboratory testing was carried out in June 2025 on marble dust and related by-products referred to as marble waste. Enkono said the testing was conducted by National Environmental Health Consultants CC,…

13 Feb

Court slaps N$158k cost order on Mubita

National News

Allexer Namundjembo Deputy minister of defence and veterans affairs and Swapo Central Committee member Charles Mubita has been ordered to pay N$158 289 in legal costs after losing his defamation case against fellow party member Reinhold Shipwiikineni. The High Court dismissed Mubita’s claim on 14 February 2025 and ordered him to pay Shipwiikineni’s legal costs. The costs were taxed on 8 December 2025 during a hearing before Taxation Master Tanita van der Merwe in the High Court’s Main Division. Shipwiikineni’s bill of costs, prepared by Tjombe Incorporated, was taxed on a party-and-party scale and certified at N$158 289. The amount…

13 Feb

Health ministry pressed on impact of US leaving WHO

Uncategorised

Allexer Namundjembo Popular Democratic Movement (PDM) lawmaker Rosa Mbinge-Tjeundo has asked the Ministry of Health and Social Services whether it has assessed the impact of the United States’ withdrawal from the World Health Organization (WHO) on Namibia’s health system. She also asked whether such an assessment would be tabled before Parliament. Mbinge-Tjeundo on Tuesday gave a notice to ask detailed questions to health minister Esperance Luvindao. “The decision by the United States of America to formally withdraw from the World Health Organization represents a significant shift in global health governance, with real and lasting implications for developing countries that rely…

13 Feb

EIF wraps up N$164m climate project in Kunene

National News

Staff Writer The Environmental Investment Fund (EIF) has concluded a five-year climate change adaptation project worth about N$164 million in the Kunene region. The project, known as IREMA, was implemented in Sesfontein, Fransfontein and Warmquelle in partnership with the Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries, Water and Land Reform. It was approved by the Green Climate Fund board on 1 March 2018. The initiative had a total financing envelope of US$10 million (approximately N$164 million). It aimed to strengthen the resilience of smallholder farmers and rural communities affected by drought and climate variability. EIF manager for corporate communications, Romeo Muyunda, said the…

13 Feb

YOUNG OBSERVER | #UNMUTED

Featured, Opinions

February has a way of drawing attention toward love, placing it gently at the centre of conversation through symbols that feel both familiar and comforting. Yet beneath the surface of celebration lies a quieter reality shaping the lives of many young people; a season of becoming marked less by certainty than by patience, less by arrival than by unfolding. In such a season, love reveals itself in forms wider than romance alone, appearing in friendship that sustains, in ambition that persists through delay, and in the quiet courage required to keep building a future that cannot yet be clearly seen.…