Day: December 15, 2023

WINDHOEK: The Agricultural Bank of Namibia (Agribank) and Germany’s Kreditanstalt fr Wiederaufbau (KfW) Development Bank on Thursday entered into a historic agreement, signing a first concessional loan of over N.dollars 400 million.

Agribank and KfW in a joint statement said the collaboration aims to empower farmers operating in both communal and commercial areas, as well as other agricultural or food-processing micro, small and medium enterprises in Namibia.

‘Agribank will on-lend the funds for the target group of small-scale farmers as well as the MSMEs in primary agriculture and agro-processing. With access to need-based financial products, the target group is empowered to use funds to expand and develop their agriculture or food processing activities, thereby generating additional income and increasing food production and income in Namibia,’ the statement read.

The project promotes the establishment of productive and resource-conserving agriculture for sustainability reasons.

After signing the loan ag
reement, Agribank and the National Planning Commission and KfW Development Bank also signed a grant agreement of just over N.dollars 20 million in Agribank’s favour, the joint statement said.

During the signing ceremony, Head of Development Cooperation at the German Embassy, Ulrike Metzger said it is known that there is a lack of access to credit financing in rural areas, especially for young farmers, women and farmers on communal land.

She noted that this prevents necessary investments to increase productivity and secure income for rural families.

‘Commercial banks can only grant loans with land titles as collateral, which cannot be presented on communal land,’ Metzger added.

Simultaneously, Agribank CEO Raphael Karuaihe said the day marks a momentous occasion – the signing ceremony of a crucial loan agreement that symbolises a significant chapter in the bank’s commitment to sustainable and long term funding for its lending activities.

‘Our vision is to contribute not only to the financial wellbeing of
our clients but also to the broader goal of environmentally conscious and sustainable practices in the agricultural sector,’ Karuaihe noted.
Source: Namibia Press Agency (NAMPA)

RUNDU: A 48-year-old fisherman was attacked by a hippo at Marema village in the Kavango West Region on Thursday.

This was revealed by the Namibian Police Force in the region in the daily crime report issued Friday.

It is alleged that the fisherman, identified as Hausiku Japhet Haruwodi, was out fishing in his canoe when a hippo jolted the canoe.

He allegedly fell into the river, and the hippo attacked him, biting him on his arm and leg.

After the hippo left, Haruwodi was pulled out of the water by another fisherman who had been fishing nearby.

Haruwodi is receiving treatment at the Rundu State Hospital after being transferred from the Nankudu District Hospital.

In an unrelated incident, the police in the Kavango West Region are also investigating a case in which two teenagers aged 14 were allegedly raped and impregnated by two men, both known to them, at Ncuncuni village.

The teens allegedly visited a clinic around 06 to 07 December and the nurses there learned that the two girls were impregnated under
coercive circumstances.

The men have not yet been arrested, but police probes into the matters were opened.
Source: Namibia Press Agency (NAMPA)

OKOMUNGONDO: Farmers in Okomungondo and surrounding villages in the Omaheke Region have suffered significant losses, with more than 100 cattle succumbing to the severe drought between September and December in the area.

Communal farmers in the region are grappling with the harsh effects of the erratic rainy season, witnessing a substantial number of deaths among their livestock due to the scarcity of grazing.

During a recent visit to the village situated in the Aminuis Constituency, farmers expressed concerns about the dire situation, saying the local population is facing starvation. The heavy reliance on cattle for various needs has exacerbated the crisis.

Farmers also reported receiving meagre drought relief assistance from the government, consisting of just one bag of maize meal, four tins of fish, and a bottle of cooking oil handed over to them at the beginning of this month.

Koonene Tjikundisa, a farmer in Otjozonguehe, said the only hope for the community lies in their pension and sporadic governmen
t subsidies. He also expressed dissatisfaction with the reliability of the subsidies, stating that they have only received assistance once since the beginning of the drought in April.

‘The prices of our livestock are another significant problem. We are not getting favourable prices, and the weight of the livestock has drastically decreased. Despite these challenges, we have no choice but to take our livestock to market, as there are no alternative options. It’s like discarding our livestock,’ Tjikundisa remarked.

Responding to inquiries, the regional constituency councillor, Peter Kazongominja, acknowledged the challenges faced by farmers and gave his assurance that efforts are being made to provide assistance.

‘The government has declared drought as an emergency and availed resources to help fight against drought in the country. There is nothing we can do but wait for the right offices to bring these resources to our farmers to help them,’ Kazongominja explained.

Asked about the prospects for rain in the
area, chief forecaster of the Namibia Meteorological Service, Odillo Kgobetsi, indicated that Omaheke is expected to receive light rain in the next two weeks. However, he emphasised that dry conditions are likely to persist in the interior, with a possibility of rain ranging from 30 to 50 per cent over parts of the Omaheke Region, Kavango West, Kavango East, Zambezi and Tsumkwe on Thursday and Friday.

‘Omaheke should thus expect some rain going into the weekend,’ he said.
Source: Namibia Press Agency (NAMPA)

OPUWO: The Epukiro Sports Council’s annual football and netball competition, which began last weekend, is set for conclusion on Sunday at the Okovimburu sports field.

This year’s competition, dubbed ‘the mother of all festive tournaments’ in rural Otjozondjupa and Omaheke due to its popularity, gathered 35 netball and 55 football teams. Four netball teams are left standing, with the semi-final set for Saturday and the final set for Sunday.

Event promoter Ngatuuane Hange told Nampa on Friday that the event started smoothly with no snags last weekend and that they anticipate a similar mood to prevail on Saturday and Sunday. According to Hange, just the first round of football matches have been played thus far, with the second round set for this weekend.

Group A has 11 teams left, while Group B has 10 teams left out of the total 55.

Last year’s champions, Eastern Swallows, will face Welle Welle in the netball semi-finals, while Renamo Bucks will face Red Fire.

A total of N.dollars 60 000 has been set aside
for both divisions, with N.dollars 40 000 going to football and N.dollars 20 000 to netball.

The winner of the netball category will get N.dollars 10 000 and a trophy, the runner-up will receive N.dollars 5 000, and the semi-finalists will each receive N.dollars 2 500.

The football champion will get N.dollars 20 000 and a trophy, the runner-up will receive N.dollars 10 000, and the semi-finalists will each receive N.dollars 5 000.

Last year, Otjijere Football Club and the Easter Swallows netball team won the championship in their respective categories.

Elsewhere, on Saturday and Sunday, the Omongua Netball and Football Association (ONEFA) will organise the maiden edition of the late Nanaki Kandjii Cup at the Okomukaru sports field in the Aminuis Constituency.

Macbeth Kazeura, the event’s organiser, told Nampa on Friday that the tournament is being held in memory of the late ONEFA president Nanaki Kandjii for his devotion and support to the advancement of sports in the Omongua community.

‘He has played a
pivotal role in regards to sports in the association, thus we honour him for such dedication and support,’ he said.

Kazeura stated that 41 football and 26 netball teams are expected.

ONEFA has committed N.dollars 37 000 to the competition, with N.dollars 27 000 put up for the football category and the remaining N.dollars 10 000 to be divided among the top four netball finalists.

The winning netball team will get N.dollars 5 000 and a trophy, the runner-up N.dollars 2 500, and the semi-finalists will each receive N.dollars 1 250.

The football champions will get N.dollars 11 000 and a trophy, the runner-up N.dollars 6 500, and the semi-final losers will each receive N.dollars 3 500. The losers of the quarter-finals will each get N.dollars 750.
Source: Namibia Press Agency (NAMPA)

WINDHOEK: The Executive Director in the Ministry of Information and Communication Technology, Audrin Mathe has announced that there will be no extension for SIM card registration, and non-registered cards will be blocked for three months.

The ED made these remarks during a media briefing at the government information centre on Friday.

The deadline for SIM card registration is 31 December 2023.

‘As for the banks, they were aware of the SIM card registration since the conception of the registration process two years ago. The banks should have not waited up until two weeks prior to the conclusion of the registration process,’ he said, referencing recent concerns raised by local banks about the process.

At the same event, Mobile Telecommunications Limited’s (MTC) Head of Corporate Legal Services, Patience Kanalelo, said that to date, 40 per cent of subscribers have successfully registered their SIM cards.

‘MTC has employed staff at all its branches to help curb the challenges of service delivery. We are also
introducing online registration, which commences next Monday. All smart phone users will be able to register via this online registration platform,’ she said.

Kanalelo further explained that the platform will enable a household to register their SIM cards with one available smartphone.

She said individuals whose SIM cards are deactivated will amongst others not receive any bank notifications.

‘However, individuals whose SIM cards are deactivated will be able to register their SIM cards during the three months to redeem their respective cell phone numbers, otherwise deactivated numbers will be issued to new users,’ she said.

At the same briefing, Telecom Namibia’s Chief Executive Officer, Stanley Shanapinda, said they have made additional efforts to assist settlements without teleshops during the registration process. Telecom registered 201 126 customers in the past week alone.

‘We do foresee that there will be challenges in terms of not everyone being able to register, hence we will extend our opening ho
urs as from today to accommodate more registrations across our 23 teleshops countrywide. We will also deploy students in the said respective areas. We would need paid assistance from you and these announcements will be made in due time,’ he said.
Source: Namibia Press Agency (NAMPA)

OTJIWARONGO: The Popular Democratic Movement (PDM) coordinator in the Otjozondjupa Region, Frederick (V8) Tjijahura on Friday joined the Swapo Party at Otjiwarongo as an ordinary party member.

Tjijahura who also served as PDM’s central committee member was received by the Swapo Party coordinator for Otjozondjupa, Immanuel Namaseb at the Swapo regional headquarters here and did not provide any reason for his resignation from PDM.

Namaseb handed over to him the Swapo Party constitution, the Swapo manifesto for 2020-2025, the party programme, and the document on party rules and procedures.

In return, Tjijahura thanked Namaseb for welcoming him to Swapo and promised to introduce to Swapo over 400 other new members from the same PDM.

PDM Otjozondjupa acting coordinator, Paulus Wimmerth in a telephone interview with Nampa on Friday afternoon said he is aware of Tjijahura’s resignation which he submitted in October this year.

‘Tjijahura has just returned back to Swapo he came from in 2015 when he joined our par
ty, so his resignation and departure do not move us,’ said Wimmerth.

Tjijahura, he said had been a demoralized member of PDM since 2021 after he only obtained one vote in the regional and local authority elections where he contested for in the Okakarara Town Council as a local authority councillor.
Source: Namibia Press Agency (NAMPA)

WINDHOEK: 32-year-old Jaezuruka Beverly Kamongua never imagined being a single mother, let alone raising a newborn baby behind the four corners of the Windhoek Correctional Facility. She is currently one of many female offenders serving time and allowed to raise her ten-month-old baby within the facilities.

Jaezuruka, who was born and raised in Okakarara, is a mother of five children and is currently serving her sentence for charges of human trafficking and rape after being found guilty a year ago and sentenced to an effective term of 20 years. At the time she started serving her sentence, Jaezuruku was three-months pregnant. She has since been allowed to birth her child and care for the child until the age of two, at which point the child will be handed over to family members or social workers in the Ministry of Gender Equality, Poverty Eradication and Social Welfare.

Although saddened by the harsh reality that she will soon have to part ways with her baby, Jaezuruka stated that she is content knowing that
she will be raised in the care of her family.

‘It is really sad, but at the end of the day, I am here to serve my sentence, so next year she is going home to my family members and I will feel very bad, but there is nothing that I can do. I am grateful to the correctional facility because they also provide formula for babies and other nutritional needs. They also provide nappies and clothes,’ she tells this agency.

The Namibian correctional facility has set up a rehabilitating programme that allows female offenders to raise their babies in a safe environment, including catering for the babies’ day-to-day meals.

Asked if the father of the baby plays a role in her life, Kamongua says he is actively involved and even sends money to support the little one.

‘The correctional facility doesn’t give snacks, so with that money, I buy snacks for the baby,’ she adds.

Jaezuruka also stated that once the baby turns two years old and has left the facility, she would like to take up needlework and carpentry lessons to g
ain some skills while serving her time.

‘At the moment I am not allowed to enrol for studies as I have to raise the baby and ensure that she is healthy. Nursing mothers are also not allowed to clean or engage in any other activities apart from looking after the babies,’ she explains.

Approached for comment, the Ministry of Gender Equality, Poverty Eradication and Social Welfare’s Chief Public Relations Officer, Lukas Haufiku, stated that the ministry plays a secondary role in this particular context, with the Namibia Correctional Services being at the forefront of the programme.

The Namibian Correctional Service in Windhoek, which as of this year holds 130 female detainees, has, with the support of the Office of the First Lady, set up a child-friendly environment within the facility for children under the age of two to assist with building and maintaining bonds

between mother and baby. The first lady of Namibia, Monica Geingos collaborated with UNFPA Namibia earlier this year

and distributed 130 cosmetic
packets and baby bags to address the lack of childcare supplies within the correctional service.

Jaezuruka’s arrest pertains to an incident in which she, along with another woman, recruited a 16-year-old girl for sexual exploitation by Fahran Khatri, a Pakistani national, for payment. The two women took the victim to Khatri’s house at Walvis Bay, where he committed sexual acts with her under coercive circumstances. The incidences happened in 2018, court records indicate.

Jaezuruka said in an interview with Nampa that to date, she has not apologised to the victim although she has accepted the court’s punishment.

‘Getting involved with the wrong friends and trying to please others is what got me in jail. I do not have a problem serving my sentence, I accept it. I do not have a problem apologising to the victim but the issue is that we do not have contact and we never met. The lawyer I had at the time of the trial also never advised me to apologise. I do not want to apologise to my victim on this platform. Th
e Namibia Correctional Facility will soon introduce a programme that allows offenders to apologise to victims face to face. I will utilise that programme when it starts,’ Jaezuruka explains.
Source: Namibia Press Agency (NAMPA)