Observer – Page 395 – Windhoek Observer

11 Sep

Swakopmund pastor accused of sexual assault

ObserverNational News

Niël Terblanché Swakopmund, September 10, 2023 - A church pastor in Swakopmund is currently facing serious charges of indecent assault after he was accused of sexually abusing two female members of his congregation. These serious allegations have sent shockwaves through the local community. According to a report provided by the Namibian Police in the Erongo Region, the pastor, a 34-year-old man, is alleged to have committed indecent acts with two women, aged 31 and 37, at his residence in the Mondesa residential area of Swakopmund over a period spanning from May to September of this year. Details emerging from the…

11 Sep

Dundee employees suffer from stomach aches after consuming unfit water

ObserverNational NewsDundee employees suffer from stomach aches after consuming unfit water

Martin Endjala Dundee Precious Metals (DPM), a smelting company in Tsumeb, has confirmed that five of its employees were recently treated for stomach illness after consuming poor-quality water at the site of the facility. The company’s Communications Manager Alina Garises, announced last week that the company took immediate action to address the water quality that resulted in minor gastro-intestinal illnesses among some employees. She said that as part of the company’s routine water management plan, they previously detected that the quality of water was out of specification in its water systems in December 2022. Then the authority accountable for domestic…

11 Sep

Search continues for missing Omaruru man at Mile 72

ObserverNational NewsSearch continues for missing Omaruru man at Mile 72

Niël Terblanché The Namibian Police in the Erongo Region have launched an urgent search operation for 53-year-old Robby Michael from Omaruru, who is suspected to have drowned in the area of Mile 72 north of Henties Bay sometime during Saturday night. The alarm was raised on Sunday morning when a passerby discovered a white extended-cab Toyota bakkie partially submerged in the sea with no occupants in sight and no one in the immediate vicinity. Police officers who responded to a report of a possible tragedy arrived at the scene and pieced together a puzzling chain of events that suggested that…

11 Sep

National Green Hydrogen Roadshow visits the south

ObserverNational NewsNational Green Hydrogen Roadshow visits the south

Martin Endjala The highly anticipated National Green Hydrogen Roadshow organised by the Namibian Government and Hyphen Hydrogen Energy (Hyphen) has landed in the projected world’s green energy hub in the Hardap and //Kharas regions The roadshow which began in August and ends in November is expected to attract many residents from communities around the country, has seen and will continue to see government and Hyphen officials engage with various stakeholders across Namibia, sharing information on the Hyphen project and the Socio-economic Development Framework. Last week the roadshow visited Hardap and //Kharas region, where people have been asking questions about all…

11 Sep

Enhancing Accountability in Public – Private Partnership in Namibia

ObserverOpinionsEnhancing Accountability in Public – Private Partnership in Namibia

Ndimudule Laina NdeumanePublic Analyst Public–private partnerships in Namibia are one features that are growing economic landscape since independence was declared in the 1990s. Despite the boom in mining industry ventures, the fiscal deficit is growing and living standards remain inadequate in localized areas, PPPs are increasingly sought after for wider social objectives. There is still a degree of resistance to private sector involvement in public services, with concerns over how employment would be affected and how black and gender empowerment could be incorporated into such schemes. Namibia has little in the way of dedicated public–private partnership policy framework. Like many…

11 Sep

Why I do what I do – a calling to promote law and access to justice

ObserverOpinionsWhy I do what I do – a calling to promote law and access to justice

Fedden Mainga Mukwata When people say your life can change in the blink of an eye, they mean it. When I look back at the events of the past 18 months, I can say that some of my wildest dreams became true or came closer to realization. My dream has always been to make law and justice accessible – to share my legal knowledge. Hence, I started FASZ Legal Consultancy CC through which that dream may be fully realized. On the other hand, I started noticing a grim picture around this line of work. I have appeared on, and follow,…

11 Sep

557 men committed suicide in 17 months

ObserverMain557 men committed suicide in 17 months

Hertta-Maria Amutenja In the last 17 months, Namibia has reported 679 cases of suicide, with a staggering 82 percent of these tragic incidents involving men, according to a recent announcement by Health and Social Services Minister Dr Kalumbi Shangula. This revelation comes during the commemoration of September’s Suicide Prevention Month last week at the conference on Mental Health and Psychosocial Support for Men. Shangula expressed deep concern over the rising number of suicides and the reluctance of many men to seek help due to societal stigmas that label them as weak. He emphasised the importance of fostering an environment where…

08 Sep

Trans-Kalahari Railway construction scheduled for 2025

ObserverObserver MoneyMmamabula in Botswana, Trans-Kalahari Railway project

Chamwe Kaira The construction of the ambitious Trans-Kalahari Railway project, a collaborative effort between Namibia and Botswana, is poised to commence in January 2025. The project’s price tag is projected to amount to billions of US dollars. Spanning 1500 kilometers, the railway line will stretch from Mmamabula in Botswana to its final destination, Walvis Bay, primarily serving as a conduit for transporting coal and copper from Botswana. In a recent announcement, the two nations disclosed their plans to initiate a call for Expressions of Interest (EOI) from interested parties starting from September 6 to November 8. The Trans-Kalahari Railway is…

08 Sep

Phase one completed at Omaruru lithium project

ObserverObserver MoneyPhase one completed at Omaruru lithium project

Phase one of the Omaruru Lithium Project has been successfully completed, Osino Resources Corporation reported this week. The company said Prospect Resources Limited, the majority owner on the project, will now proceed with phase two of the earn-in agreement. In the fourth quarter of 2022, Osino entered into an Earn-In and Shareholder Agreement with Prospect, granting Prospect the right to acquire a 40% interest in the project upon the completion of phase one and the potential to increase it to 51% upon completion of phase two. Prospect has the opportunity to earn up to an 85% interest in the project,…

08 Sep

Meatco to maximise key premium markets

ObserverObserver MoneyMeatco to maximise key premium markets

Chamwe Kaira Meat producer, Meatco plans to maximize its returns and improve its revenue by focusing on the key premium markets, that is, Norway, Europe, UK, China and USA. Norway remains a strategic premium market from which Meatco derives significant revenue from the allocated quota of 1,200 tonnes for 2023, the company said in the 2022/23 annual report. Meatco said international realisation for the period under review increased by 15% to N$121.60/kg versus prior year (2023: N$106.50/kg). Meatco obtained a 33.33% interest in GPS Norway AS on 19 May 2014. GPS Norway AS is a Norwegian registered company with the…