Opinions – Page 2 – Windhoek Observer

08 Dec

AfDB’s N$30.3bn commitment: opportunity or oversold promise?

Editorial, Featured, Opinions

The African Development Bank’s approval of N$30.3 billion for Namibia under its 2025–2030 Country Strategy Paper is, without question, one of the most significant financial commitments the nation has seen in recent years. Headlines have naturally celebrated the investment as a major win; “economic transformation”, “human capital development”, “strategic infrastructure”, and other familiar phrases have again taken centre stage. But as with all large-scale development financing, the real question for Namibians is simpler and far more urgent: What, exactly, will this money do, and for whom? The language surrounding the allocation is predictably polished. The AfDB highlights “inclusive growth”, “economic…

07 Dec

The limits of courtesy: What modern diplomacy requires and classical diplomacy provides

Opinions

PAUL T. SHIPALE (with inputs by Folito Nghitongovali Diawara Gaspar) The analysis of minister Selma Ashipala-Musayi’s response to the United Kingdom’s concerns offers a lens through which to examine how diplomacy itself has evolved and what this evolution means for states navigating an increasingly complex global environment. While the minister’s position reflects honourable and historically significant diplomatic virtues, the global system in which these virtues operate has transformed. This episode illustrates a broader lesson for contemporary foreign policy: classical diplomatic principles remain necessary, but they are no longer sufficient. Diplomacy has shifted from a state-centric model to a networked system…

05 Dec

From councils of elders to committees of convenience: Namibia’s task force dilemma

Featured, Opinions

PAUL T. SHIPALE (with inputs by Folito Nghitongovali Diawara Gaspar) In traditional African communities, pressing challenges were addressed by councils of elders – small groups of trusted, wise individuals who diagnosed problems and proposed solutions. Modern African governments have mirrored this model through task forces: ad hoc committees created to tackle crises in health, economics, corruption, energy, and national security. Typically appointed by presidents, cabinets, or ministers, these bodies are meant to act faster than bureaucracy, mobilise expertise, and recommend actionable reforms. Task forces in theory and reality At their best, task forces are problem-solving engines that: • Gather high-level…

05 Dec

YOUNG OBSERVER | Youth Spotlight: William Minnie

Featured, Opinions

Young Observer caught up with the youngest and newly elected local authority councillor, William Minnie, of the Mariental Constituency. You have just become one of the youngest councillors in the country. What was the decisive moment that pushed you from being an engaged young person to actually contesting for office? My journey into leadership began long before I ever imagined myself in public office. I was raised in Mariental since birth by my late father, my grandparents and my two aunts, who created a home filled with discipline, compassion, and a deep sense of responsibility to others. My late father…

05 Dec

YOUNG OBSERVER | #Unmuted

Featured, Opinions

December has arrived with the familiar brightness of warm weather, crowded calendars and a soft expectation that the mood of the country should somehow lift. The festive season in Namibia always brings its own rhythm: towns get louder, families gather, travel plans fill group chats, and everyone turns their attention toward rest, celebration, or escape. Yet as we step into this first edition of the month, it is important to acknowledge that the start of December does not magically reset what young people have been carrying throughout the year. If anything, it brings those realities into sharper focus. This week’s…

05 Dec

Task forces for what?

Opinions

Kae Matundu-Tjiparuro The President has announced task forces for the recovery of the economy, health, housing and land. What the various task forces need to do about these four areas of socio-economic endeavour may, perhaps, sooner rather than later, become clear and expanded and expounded on further on. By Her Excellency herself, perhaps by the task teams themselves. That is if such expounding and clarification may be part of their briefs and mandates. Needless to say, their briefs and mandates need further explication. Regarding the economy and its propounded recovery, it is a well-known fact that the Namibian economy has,…

04 Dec

The beauty of a country undermined by mines: Is it true that the underground resources bring more wealth than tourism?

Opinions

PAUL T. SHIPALE (with inputs by Folito Nghitongovali Diawara Gaspar) President Netumbo Nandi-Ndaitwah observes that Modestus Amutse’s leadership record at the regional level strengthens the experience he brings to his new role as Minister of Industries, Mines, and Energy. We agree with those who are saying that this ministry needs someone at the helm who has outstanding analytical and communication skills, a deep understanding of energy and mining policies and leadership experience in the field. Someone who has the capability to integrate mining into the sixth National Development Plan (NDP6) to enhance implementation by aligning the sector with national economic…

02 Dec

A promising vision, but can the new task forces deliver?

Editorial, Featured, Opinions

President Netumbo Nandi-Ndaitwah’s commissioning of the national task forces on economic recovery, health, and housing & land marks one of the clearest early signals of the 8th Administration’s intention to break from business-as-usual governance. The speech delivered was measured, sober, and deliberately forward-looking. It struck the necessary chords of unity, urgency, and institutional alignment. Yet, as with any initiative built on lofty ambition, the real test lies not in the unveiling but in the doing. The President’s framing of Namibia’s current challenges – rising living costs, constrained job creation, underperforming service delivery, a strained health system, and the persistent burdens…

02 Dec

From classroom to industry relevance: Why Africa needs problem-based learning

Featured, Opinions

More than ever, this is the moment for curriculum experts, educational planners, university leaders and policymakers to converge around a shared priority: implementing problem-based learning (PBL) to tackle unemployment, strengthen entrepreneurship and fix the persistent mismatch between graduate skills and the demands of industry. In January 2023, I was among a group of six students privileged to spend six months at Aalborg University in Denmark on an exchange programme. While I expected cultural surprises and harsh winter weather, nothing was as eye-opening as the university’s learning philosophy: problem-based learning. With graduate unemployment rising and frustration growing among young people across…

01 Dec

STOP PRESS | World AIDS Day

Featured, Opinions

Every year on 1 December, Namibia joins the rest of the world in marking World AIDS Day, an annual reminder of the profound human cost of a virus that has shaped our national story for more than three decades. It is a day of memory, gratitude, and resolve, but also one that demands an honest confrontation with the realities we too often soften with comforting language. If anything, Namibia should treat this year’s observance not as a ceremonial pause but as a warning flare. For while our progress is real, our vulnerabilities remain stubborn, layered, and in some cases worsening…