Featured – Page 16 – Windhoek Observer

11 Aug

Madam President, How About a Jobs Summit?

Editorial, Featured, Opinions

Namibia’s unemployment crisis is not just a statistic. It is the quiet desperation in villages and towns, the hollowed-out dreams of graduates, and the simmering frustration of a generation with no place to go. We have heard the speeches and seen the plans. What we need now is not another promise, but a national reckoning on jobs. When President Nandi-Ndaitwah declared in her inaugural speech that “in Namibia, we are too few to be poor,” it wasn’t just a hopeful slogan. It was a challenge. A reminder that our small population should be an advantage, yet unemployment and underemployment continue to choke opportunity…

11 Aug

Ethical procurement practices and the impact on state-owned enterprises, the procurement profession, and small and medium enterprise development

Featured, Opinions

Zucky Bauleth-Nashima and Lusia Kornelius In Namibia, public procurement is rigorously administered and regulated under the Public Procurement Act and related regulations, ensuring fair participation in economic activities and equitable opportunities, particularly for Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs). The private sector, particularly SMEs, is crucial to the production and supply of goods and services, playing a vital role in ensuring availability, operational efficiency, and sustainability. However, there has been a notable demand for goods and services in offices, Ministries and Agencies (OMAs). This adversity has heightened the need to go beyond local supplies and extend the sourcing of goods and…

11 Aug

DON’T ENTERTAIN INTRUSIVE THOUGHTS, THEY CAN COST YOU!

Featured, Opinions

Morna Ikosa Recent reports cited that Namibia has one of the highest suicide rates in Africa. Although financial distress has been confirmed to be one of the leading causes of suicides, it is time we look deeper into the matters of the mind. Dr Caroline Leaf, a metacognitive neuroscientist who has studied the mind for nearly 40 years, states that “75-98% of mental, physical, and behavioural illnesses stem from toxic thinking.” These statistics are alarming and cannot be ignored. Although Men's Mental Health Month has ended, both men and women must recognise and prioritise the importance of maintaining a consistent…

11 Aug

Nghitumbwa wins WBO global title

Featured, SportsNghitumbwa

Erasmus Shalihaxwe Namibian boxer Fillipus “Energy” Nghitumbwa won the World Boxing Organisation (WBO) Global Super Bantamweight champion on Saturday night after defeating South Africa’s Mxolisi Zuma. Nghitumbwa knocked out Zuma in the sixth round, handing him his first professional loss. Zuma fell to the canvas after taking heavy punches to the head, prompting the referee to stop the fight at two minutes and 56 seconds. Nghitumbwa now holds 16 professional fights, with 14 wins by knockout and two losses. The victory moves him closer to a world title challenge. The fight took place over the weekend at the Windhoek Country…

08 Aug

Brand Africa honours Namibia’s Best Brands: Windhoek Observer to publish exclusive supplement

Featured, Observer Money

Windhoek — A celebration of African excellence and branding took centre stage recently as Brand Africa, in collaboration with the Windhoek Observer under the auspices of Paragon Media, hosted the 3rd edition of Best Brands Namibia awards. Held in the capital, the event brought together Namibia’s leading voices in business, media, and marketing, united by a shared vision to define, promote, and elevate African brands. At the heart of this movement is Brand Africa, a pan-African non-profit initiative founded in 2010 by renowned branding authority Dr Thebe Ikalafeng. The initiative was born from a bold and urgent mission: to drive…

07 Aug

Namibia’s 51% Mining Ownership Gambit: A Strategic Win or a Populist Trap?

Editorial, Featured, Opinions

The Namibian government’s recent announcement that it will take up a 51% stake in all mining operations came at an interesting time, right in the middle of the Mining Expo, where international investors were visiting the country. The timing was clearly intentional, aimed at signaling a new era of resource nationalism. For many Namibians, the declaration sounded like a long-overdue corrective to decades of foreign dominance in the sector. The applause was loud, and understandably so. Who would not support the idea of Namibians finally owning the wealth beneath their soil? But beneath the rhetoric lies a more complicated reality.…

07 Aug

Beauties FC pleads for CAF funds

Featured, Sports

Erasmus Shalihaxwe FNB Women's Super League champions, Beauties Football Club, are appealing for financial support to participate in the upcoming CAF Women’s Champions League. The team was drawn in Group B alongside Mamelodi Sundowns Ladies FC (South Africa), Ntopwa FC (Malawi), and Zesco Ndola Girls (Zambia). The matches will be held in Johannesburg, South Africa, from 22 to 30 August. . The group winner and runner-up will advance to the next phase of the competition, scheduled for November 2025 in Morocco. Despite receiving N$250 000 for winning the league in May, the club says the amount is insufficient to meet…

06 Aug

Over 790 athletes compete in SADC Corrections Games

Featured, Sports

Allexer Namundjembo Structured sports activities promote discipline, self-esteem, and behavioural transformation, preparing inmates for reintegration in society. This was the message from home affairs, immigration, safety and security minister Lucia Iipumbu during the official opening of the fourth edition of the SADC Corrections/Prisons/Penitentiary Services Sports and Cultural Games in Windhoek on Monday. Iipumbu said the games are not only about competition but also about improving the physical and emotional health of correctional officers while supporting reform strategies and rehabilitation programmes across the region. She referenced World Health Organisation (WHO) findings on the mental toll of correctional work, saying initiatives like…

06 Aug

Paved Roads, Unpaved Lives

Editorial, Featured, Opinions

There’s something to be said about Namibia’s roads. Anyone who has driven across our vast, open country knows the feeling, smooth tar under your wheels, horizons stretching endlessly, and barely a pothole in sight. In fact, our roads are ranked among the very best on the African continent. That’s no small feat for a nation as sparsely populated as ours. With a population of only about three million people, we have close to 49,000 kilometers of roads crisscrossing this wide land. Of those, around 6,600 kilometers are fully paved to international standards. For perspective, that’s roughly 16 meters of road…

05 Aug

Eco Fuel owed Namcor before my time – Dunaiski

Featured, Latest

Justicia Shipena Former commercial manager of downstream sales and marketing at the National Petroleum Corporation of Namibia (Namcor), Olivia Dunaiski, says she had no authority to increase any credit limit.“I certainly increased no credit limit,” she said in an affidavit filed in the ongoing Namcor bail application at the Windhoek Magistrates Court. Dunaiski said she joined Namcor Trading, a subsidiary of Namcor Holdings, in October 2019.At that time, she said, Eco Fuel Investment CC was already conducting business with the company.She said Eco Fuel was already in arrears with a substantial amount when she started.Eco Fuel is reportedly linked to…