Opinions

Kae Matundu-Tjiparuro CERTAINLY any Pan-Africanist cannot but commend as well as welcome the adoption by the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) of a resolution on the Transatlantic Slavery and the Slave Trade. Defining the unspeakable and despicable acts of former colonial powers in Africa, foremost the Transatlantic Slavery and Slave Trade, as “the gravest crime against humanity” is giving a moral as well as political weight to the long demand and aspirations by and of Africans and people of African descent in the diaspora for reparations from the former colonial powers. Expectedly, foremost, the United States of America (USA) voted…

Paul T. Shipale (with inputs by Folito Nghitongovali Diawara Gaspar) Landless People’s Movement (LPM) leader Bernadus Swartbooi said the government should explore exporting labour by sending qualified Namibians abroad and receiving remittances that can be ploughed back into society. This follows his concerns that the government is overemphasising social protection and particularly education, the highest-funded sector with a budget allocation of N$28 billion this financial year, which could create more problems. Swartbooi made the remarks while contributing to a discussion on the national budget in the National Assembly. “The government needs to look at countries like Nigeria and South Africa,…

By the President’s own admission in her 36th Independence Anniversary statement and speech, Namibia is facing poverty and inequality. That is a fact! However, what is not clear and what the country must come to terms with through a national dialogue is what these socio-economic evils, for a lack of a better term, represent.  Challenges as Her Excellency maintains. Or are they fundamental factors of the capitalist system? Because unless the country addresses these varying interpretations and understandings as they seem between and among those, like Her Excellency, who think poverty and inequality are just challenges, and those who think…

Paul T. Shipale (with inputs by Folito Nghitongovali Diawara Gaspar) On 21 March 2026, President Netumbo Nandi-Ndaitwah stood before the nation and invoked a familiar but powerful refrain: “One Namibia, One Nation.” It is a phrase or slogan deeply embedded in the country’s post-independence identity and a moral anchor forged in the transition from colonial rule to sovereign statehood. Yet, in her speech, unity did not sound like a settled achievement. It sounded like a warning. Her emphasis on unity must be read not as ceremonial rhetoric but as a political signal. When a head of state stresses the dangers…

Hopolang Phororo Almost every day, Namibia’s newspapers carry a story about jobs. One day it highlights youth empowerment initiatives, such as MTC’s 4Life programme. Another day it is a sobering reminder that more than 70% of working individuals are unable to save or build generational wealth because unemployed relatives depend on them.  On another day, we read about efforts such as the National Youth Development Fund supporting young entrepreneurs. And we also hear about TVET as a pathway to economic emancipation. Different headlines. Different angles. But they all point to the same reality: jobs and livelihoods matter deeply to Namibians. …

Leena Kloppers In the Technical and Vocational Education and Training (TVET) sector, classrooms and workshops are far from neutral spaces. They are the soil in which seeds of knowledge and skills are sown, shaped and fertilised by both the conscious and unconscious thoughts of TVET trainers and trainees.  One powerful set of assumptions relates to which trades are ‘suitable’ for different trainees. This assumption translates into real-world actions where trades such as welding, construction, and automotive mechanics are usually male-dominated, and other trades such as office administration, hairdressing, and cosmetology tend to be dominated by women. While gender may influence…

Sem Billy David  Windhoek is a city of sharp contrasts: a two-faced city. On one side, there are modern suburbs with smooth roads, bright streetlights, shopping malls, and neatly planned houses. On the other side, there are vast informal settlements, where thousands of people live in shacks without proper water, toilets, electricity, or safe roads. These two realities stand side by side, often just a few kilometres apart.  Many residents have started calling it a “two-face city". The question is: Does it have to stay this way? And more specifically: can the Windhoek City Council decide to prioritise informal settlements…

Kae Matundu-Tjiparuro So what about May 28, Genocide Remembrance Day? This question, ironically, some descendants of the survivors of the GENOCIDE of the Ovaherero, Ovambanderu and Nama have increasingly been asking themselves since the official inaugural commemoration of this day.  GENOCIDE Remembrance DAY, which since last May, has been officially observed by the Namibian government. But some descendants have been commemorating it since 2024 and shall once again be commemorating it for the fourth successive year this year. While the commemoration of the DAY by some descendants this year is a foregone conclusion, as they have become accustomed to doing…