Namibia – Page 8 – Windhoek Observer

10 Sep

Going broke makes you look closer

ObserverNational NewsNamibia

There is a silver lining to the country’s current economic state of near collapse. The tenderpreneurs, 10-percenters, inside traders, embezzlers, tax evaders, and loophole exploiters have reduced income streams. There is not enough left in state coffers to feed waste and corruption. The public demand to fulfil existing state obligations and handle the pandemic trumps all. Going broke has made the officials that should have been watching the bottom line, wake up and watch the money better. Now that the Treasury’s accounts have cobwebs instead of cash, questions are finally being asked about where it all went. Closer looks are…

09 Sep

Tourism sector loses N$116m in cancellations . . . As Ministry announces amended arrival protocols

ObserverObserver MoneyNamibia, Pohamba Shifeta, Tourism Ministry

Clifton Movirongo The Tourism Ministry has announced that the tourism industry has recorded net cancellations of N$115.7 million since the announcement of implementation protocols of the tourism revival initiative. This comes as Namibia recorded zero arrivals in the first week of its tourism initiative, which kicked off on 1 September. The Ministry has now announced amendments to its initial protocols in a bid to attract tourists to the country. According to Tourism minister Pohamba Shifeta the revision, will allow some flexibilities to the implementation protocols, while balancing the necessary health and safety measures. “Upon arrival at the Hosea Kutako International…

08 Sep

Tourism initiative records zero arrivals . . . as sector raises practicality concerns

ObserverObserver MoneyFederation of Namibian Tourism Associations (FENATA), Namibia, Tourism Minister Pohamba Shifeta

Clifton Movirongo Namibia has failed to record a single tourist arrival, a week after it opened its borders to tourist arrivals under the international tourism revival initiative. Tourism Minister Pohamba Shifeta said the industry was banking on the resumption of international flights into the country, with some airlines expected to resume on Friday. “Nothing has really happened in the first official week of the government’s tourism revival plan since the proclamation. However, about five airlines have confirmed that they are landing in Namibia within this month, with the first one scheduled for Friday, 11 September and more coming after that.”…

03 Sep

Oarsmen fight while the ship sinks

ObserverNational NewsMinister of Defence Peter Hafeni Vilho, Namibia

In case anyone is mistaken, Namibia is in serious trouble right now. The ship’s engines are dead and we are taking on water fast. All the oarsmen in the boat must bail water and row to get us to the closest patch of dry land. Instead, the bickering has begun. Each side will be righteous in their points of view and all of us (including them) will drown. Minister of Defence Peter Hafeni Vilho has again placed himself in the spotlight. Defence Ministers with the mandate to represent the elected government in administering and guiding the military should be less…

26 Aug

Slow cooker meatballs in tomato sauce

ObserverUncategorisedNamibia, tomato sauce

Jackie Wilson Asheeke Simple recipes are the best. I like this one for slow cooker meatballs in tomato sauce. My sister Susan turned me on to the meatballs as she usually makes them when I am home in the USA for the holidays. I stole her idea and used it for family meals when I returned to Namibia. It was a hit! I played around with the directions below and found combinations that work for Namibia and for me. A lot of these recipes on line are geared for what is available in US or European stores. A few of…

26 Aug

Don’t blame education failures on COVID-19

ObserverNational NewsCOVID, Education, Namibia

The pandemic has slammed Namibia’s already weak educational system. The victims of this are the students. Many learners have lost time in their climb towards degrees or advancement from one grade to another. But, no one can credibly blame the failures of Namibia’s ability to uplift its learners, on the pandemic. The massive problems and alarmingly bad test results existed long before that. During apartheid, Bantu education systematically, purposefully and deliberately buried minds and creativity. Oppression can never work if people expose lies, embrace new ideas and lose all fear of anyone calling themselves superior. But, after independence, those minds…

21 Aug

Standard Bank relaunched the Buy-a-Brick Footprint

ObserverObserver MoneyBuy-a-Brick Footprint Socks, Covid-19, Namibia, Standard Bank, Standard Bank (SBN)

Staff Writer Standard Bank (SBN) has relaunched the Buy-a-Brick Footprint Socks campaign which is intended to raise funds for the construction of houses for Namibia’s shack dwelling community. The campaign was initially launched in March this year to mobilize schools in the nationwide effort to raise funds for the construction of low cost house but had to be suspended due to the Coronavirus (covid-19) pandemic. However, despite the prevalence of Covid-19, Standard Bank deemed it necessary to relaunch the campaign to shine light on the plight of the shack dwellers community by raising funds through the selling of the Footprint…

20 Aug

Namibia can only survive if it is unified

ObserverNational NewsNamibia, Twaloloka, Walvis Bay

The recent back-and-forth between burned out ‘residents’ of Twaloloka and a landless group claiming to be born in Walvis Bay, shows the ugly spectre of disunity. The latter group is angry. They purport to have been waiting for land without results. They object to the fire victims who are supposedly not originally from Walvis Bay and yet are set to receive plots. Times are tough; the worst breakdown is where groups begin to compare their poverty and stubbornly claim that theirs is worse. Two groups of landless, impoverished people fighting each other solves nothing. It does not address the root…

14 Aug

Affected communities reject government efforts

ObserverNational NewsGermans, Namibia, president Hage Geingob

The most emotive and sensitive issues in Namibia are the genocide of 1904-1908 and reparations. This week, President Hage Geingob rejected a monetary offer by Germany as ‘reparations’ for genocide. Colonial Germany specifically targeted and killed tens of thousands of people. They stole everything these people owned. They engaged in a vicious military action that permanently drove thousands out of the country of their birth. Deutsche Welle (DW) announced the proposed amount was 10 million euros. Geingob declared the amount, “insulting.” But inside Namibia this issue runs deep. Communities of people directly affected by the genocide are not a part…

14 Aug

Government must declare independence from Struggle Kids

ObserverNational NewsChildren of the Liberation Struggle, Covid-19, Namibia

It is time for the government to free itself from the emotional stranglehold exerted by the group calling themselves Children of the Liberation Struggle. The country is being strangled by COVID-19. It is also facing drought recovery challenges and overall economic disaster. There is alarming unemployment levels (and rising), a horrific housing crisis, and the soon-to-arrive IMF. The government must forgive its original poor handling of this crisis years ago, add up what has been done well, declare victory, and move on. This is a country of 2.5 million people. The needs of 300 citizens calling themselves children of the…