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OBSERVER COASTAL | Lifeguards withdraw from Swakopmund beaches

OBSERVER COASTAL | Lifeguards withdraw from Swakopmund beaches

Renthia Kaimbi Certified lifeguards from Monarch Lifeguard and Emergency Services have withdrawn from Platz am Meer and Mole Beach in Swakopmund following the end of their contract with the municipality. Monarch founder Muyenga Martin said the contract ran from 05 December 2025 to 05 January 2026 and has now come to an end. He said the period was short but demanding. Martin said the team focused on preventative lifeguarding, supported by trained professionals on constant watch.  He said routine rescues were limited, but several serious incidents showed how dangerous the coastline can be. In one incident, the lifeguards responded to…
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OBSERVER COASTAL | Ex-drug dealer gives school children free haircuts

OBSERVER COASTAL | Ex-drug dealer gives school children free haircuts

Renthia Kaimbi Fifty young boys in Walvis Bay received free back-to-school haircuts yesterday after a local barber opened his doors to give back to the community. The gesture came from the owner of El Shaddai Barbershop, 27-year-old Lumardo Mouton said the act was part of repairing harm he caused in the past. “I destroyed so many people in my community from smuggling drugs. So this was part of how I am paying back,” he said. Mouton shared that from the age of 12 until two years ago, he was involved in dealing drugs. He said his entry into crime began…
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Buying a future? Corruption in school placements betrays our children and our nation

There are moments when a society must pause, look itself in the mirror, and ask difficult questions. The disturbing reports that some parents are offering bribes to teachers to secure placement for their children in preferred schools, and that some educators are accepting these inducements, represent one such moment. This is not a minor administrative lapse or an isolated act of desperation. It is a corrosive practice that strikes at the moral foundation of our education system and, by extension, the future of our country. The Windhoek Observer commends the Ministry of Education, Arts and Culture for issuing a public…
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Namibia’s strategic imperative: sovereignty in an age of structural power 

Namibia’s strategic imperative: sovereignty in an age of structural power 

PAUL T. SHIPALE (with inputs by Folito Nghitongovali Diawara Gaspar) Venezuela, the New Diplomacy of Force, and the Quiet Geometry of Global Control To call this America’s first invasion or its first violation of international law is hypocrisy. The real question is more unsettling: why does a single power remain so persistently driven to control the world, even at the expense of the order it claims to uphold? The answer is rarely found in speeches or official declarations. As history repeatedly shows, the true nature of political power lies not in what is promised aloud, but in what is done…
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Khomas sees cheaper beef as Kavango East prices rise

Khomas sees cheaper beef as Kavango East prices rise

Chamwe Kaira Beef consumer prices showed mixed movements in December 2025, with several key cuts becoming cheaper in Khomas, while Kavango East recorded increases across many products, according to data from the Livestock and Livestock Products Board of Namibia. In Khomas, weekly prices fell for a number of cuts during the week ended 12 December. Loin prices dropped by 11.54% to N$199.99 per kilogram.  Fillet declined by 5.36% to N$233.90 per kilogram. Rump eased by 1.43% to N$205.79 per kilogram, while topside fell by 7.41% to N$144.92 per kilogram. Lower-priced cuts also became cheaper. Hump declined by 2.17% to N$97.82…
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Standard Bank Namibia cuts everyday banking fees

Standard Bank Namibia cuts everyday banking fees

Staff Writer Standard Bank Namibia has introduced a new pricing strategy that came into effect on 1 January 2026. The changes aim to reduce everyday banking costs and expand access to digital and bundled banking services for individuals and businesses. The bank said the revised pricing includes lower fees on selected daily transactions, more free services, and four bundled account options designed for different income and lifestyle needs. The strategy also places stronger focus on digital banking and support for small and medium-sized enterprises. According to the bank, customers will benefit from reduced fees on digital transactions, lower electronic funds…
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Outsurance listing on A2X

Outsurance listing on A2X

Outsurance Group Limited (OGL) is set to list on the A2X via a secondary listing, with qualifying shares expected to be listed on the bourse this month. OGL informed shareholders that the company’s ordinary shares have been approved for inclusion in the list of qualifying equity securities to be traded on A2X, effective 14 January 2026. The insurer’s primary listing on the JSE Limited and its issued share capital will be unaffected by the secondary listing on A2X. “For the past 28 years, OUTsurance has delivered innovative, value-for-money products to its clients, and we are pleased to help extend this…
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Namibia oil finds help drive Africa’s upstream revival

Namibia oil finds help drive Africa’s upstream revival

Chamwe Kaira Namibia’s offshore oil discoveries are helping to renew momentum in Africa’s upstream energy sector. However, tight investment discipline and operational challenges continue to slow development, according to the African Energy Chamber. Two major offshore discoveries made in Namibia in 2022 by Shell and TotalEnergies marked a turning point for the country’s energy prospects. The finds also boosted exploration interest across the continent, including in Côte d’Ivoire, Angola and Egypt. In its 2026 Outlook Report, The State of African Energy, the African Energy Chamber says global exploration and production capital spending is expected to reach about US$504 billion by…
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Why IShowSpeed matters and why the rule of law matters more

The reaction to American YouTuber Darren Watkins Jr, better known as IShowSpeed, failing to land in Namibia has exposed a generational and philosophical divide in how we understand influence, opportunity and governance in the digital age. For many older Namibians, the question has been simple and sincere: What is the big deal about a young man shouting into a camera while playing games or reacting to football clips?  For others, particularly the youth and those working in tourism, branding and the creative economy, the disappointment has been equally real. Both perspectives deserve to be heard. And both can be reconciled.…
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New Omuthiya open market still incomplete …as vendors reject to move to incomplete market 

New Omuthiya open market still incomplete …as vendors reject to move to incomplete market 

Allexer Namundjembo More than three years after the Omuthiya Town Council began construction of a new open market in the 2022/23 financial year, the facility remains incomplete.  This has led to frustration among vendors and community leaders who expected improved trading conditions in the regional capital. The modern open market was meant to provide a hygienic and formal space for informal traders who have long operated along the busy B1 road and other central areas of Omuthiya.  The council said the market would accommodate about 500 vendors and serve residents and travellers once operational. Despite early assurances that the project…
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