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9233 Posts

The ‘opening’ moment of truth is approaching

As the government continues with the plan to move towards the total lifting of the state of emergency in Namibia, a moment of truth for decision-makers is coming. Do we open faster to save parts of the economy or slow down? Namibia is not the only country dealing with this dilemma. Business executives with access to high offices are screaming because their net worth of millions is dropping. Their lifestyles are threatened and they are closing ranks to stop the downward trend. At the same time, these investors, business people and captains of industry are the engine that runs the…
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Bag of Hope Initiative hands over donations

Bag of Hope Initiative hands over donations

Staff Writer RMB Namibia, through the HOPE initiative of FirstRand Namibia, recently handed over N$166 000 consisting of N$60 000 worth of maize, N$24 800 of pasta, N$26 400 of Weetbix, N$40 200 of cornflakes, N$4 300 of juice, and N$11 000 worth of soup packets to vulnerable families impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic. FirstRand Namibia established the ‘Bag of Hope’ initiative under their HOPE Fund in April 2020 and partnered with Bokomo Namibia and Co-Feed Namibia to feed the needy and the most vulnerable families in Namibia, whose impoverished situation has been exacerbated by COVID-19. Through the Bag of…
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Theofilus shortlisted for global award

Theofilus shortlisted for global award

Staff Writer Information and Technology Deputy Minister, Emma Theofilus, appointed in March this year, has been shortlisted with 15 other young politicians for the One Young World Politician of the Year. The One Young World Politician of the Year Award recognises five of the world's most outstanding politicians between the ages of 18 - 35, who are using their positions to have a positive impact on young people in their communities and countries. “Through their important work, these candidates highlight the benefit of including young people in politics. The shortlisted nominees are currently being reviewed by One Young World’s expert…
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Calle in land ownership dilemma

Calle in land ownership dilemma

...as AR petition is tabled in Parliament Andrew Kathindi Minister of Agriculture, Water and Land Reform, Calle Schlettwein says foreign land ownership in Namibia should not be allowed, but can only be enforced with new regulations. Schlettwein said currently his ministry was being guided by the resolutions of the second land conference, held in 2018, where some of the pertinent topics discussed included resettlement policy and criteria, land allocation and administration and the expropriation of agriculture land. “But we must distinguish between different categories of land. Our reading is that the prohibition is primarily for agricultural land. Industrial development is…
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We did our best – Kawana

We did our best – Kawana

Staff Writer Fisheries minister, Albert Kawana maintains his ministry did its utmost best to ensure that everyone was catered for when it allocated the new fishing rights. “We received 5,176 applications and it was impossible to give everyone quotas but we ensured that different groups were catered for, from the youth, regions, women and war veterans,” the minister said. “We had to consider broad-based allocation and we absolutely ensured that we catered for all the various groups.” As part of their submissions, applicants were to be judged on a scorecard system to determine their contribution to socio-economic development. The criteria…
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FNB supports Van Rhyn Primary School

FNB supports Van Rhyn Primary School

Community Donation of N$10,000 from FNB Central Cluster Brian Kandanga through the FirstRand Namibia Foundation Trust. Items include: Face protector shields, gloves, hand sanitizers and masks. Due to the current situation (COVID-19) the school finds itself in a very difficult financial situation. As per WHO and Namibian Government regulations, schools need to purchase items which are very costly. The school can only guarantee quality education if the learners are healthy and if measures are in place that can protect them from the current pandemic. “From the school on the hill, we would like to extend our heartfelt gratitude to FNB…
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Robbing Peter to pay Paul is not a policy; it is confusion

In May, fisheries minister Albert Kawana announced that the government will allocate certain horse mackerel and hake quotas to six companies. To get these quotas, companies were supposed to hire about 1,300 fishermen who lost their jobs due to the Fishrot scandal. In addition, the government has buckled to pressure and awarded quotas to new rights holders from the over 5,000 submissions that were received during the national casting call for applications for fishing quotas two years ago. To satisfy these situations, the government has decided to rob Peter to pay Paul. This has made matters worse. To spread the…
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Port of Walvis Bay receives record size vessel

Port of Walvis Bay receives record size vessel

Staff Writer The Namibian Ports Authority received one of the largest vessels to ever dock in Namibian waters; CMA CGM operated MV Mediterranean Bridge, with the length of 335.63 meters. This comes after the Port of Walvis Bay successfully handled a trial call of the first 9,000 TEUs Maersk Sheerness with the length of 335 meters in April. The Mediterranean Bridge is discharging 1,781 TEU’s and loading 697 TEU’s, which amounts to a record of 2,478 TEU’s handled on a single vessel at the Port of Walvis Bay and the vessel is scheduled to depart on 25th June 2020. Amando…
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Ministry not relaxing English requirement

Ministry not relaxing English requirement

Andrew Kathindi The Ministry of Education has no plans to relax the English promotion requirement for critical grades. This comes amid calls for the current school curriculum to be revised, which currently has English as promotional language, particularly for learners in rural areas who are believed to be held back by the demand to attain a 40 percent pass mark for promotion. According to the latest promotion policy of 2015, a learner in Grades 5-7 should be promoted to the next grade if they have obtained an E-grade (40 percent) or better in 5 out of 6 promotional subjects, and…
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Parliament postpones abortion discussion

Parliament postpones abortion discussion

Andrew Kathindi The discussion on the issue of abortion has been postponed until Thursday 2 July, after it was officially raised in Parliament by NUDO leader and Deputy Minister of Health, Esther Muinjangue. After giving notice to the house to discuss the issue, Muinjangue raised the matter Thursday, although she maintained she was not for abortion in her personal capacity. “The fact is that there are young girls who carry out abortion, whether it is traveling to other neighbouring countries or whether carrying it out in the backyards of our homes, it is taking place. Abortion does not only affect…
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