Nkurenkuru: The Kavango West Regional Development Coordinating Committee recently concluded its budget deliberations in Nkurenkuru, announcing a N.dollars 393 million allocation for the 2025/26 financial year. This represents an increase of approximately N.dollars 70 million from the previous financial year’s N.dollars 322 million.
According to Namibia Press Agency, Chief Regional Officer Matheus Singambwe acknowledged the positive development, but emphasised that the allocated budget is still not sufficient. Singambwe stated, “This is a positive development from our national government. However, in terms of our regional needs, it is still not sufficient, because we are a region that was just declared recently.”
The region faces several obstacles, including centralised governance where line ministries retain control over most projects, electricity shortages, and delayed project payments. A critical concern is the timing of fund disbursements. Singambwe further elaborated, “The budget that we have received now is an allocation.. We have not yet received these funds, and we are already in the midterm budget,” highlighting the need for faster budget approval processes to ensure timely project implementation.
Director of Planning, Development, Monitoring and Evaluation Egidius Nambara expressed concerns about implementation, noting, “As much as it is allocated on paper, the implementation part is another question.”
Local leaders believe more should be done to address historical imbalances in Kavango West, known as Namibia’s youngest region. Joseph Likoro, Control Administrative Officer for the Ncuncuni Constituency, commented, “With Kavango West being the youngest region, we thought we would have received special concessions.”
Likoro recognized government efforts while calling for broader inclusion, stating, “We see that the government is making some effort to address this, and we want to see these kinds of intentions to also go beyond the projects and to also assimilate and integrate more people from these areas into decision-making.”
The budget allocation represents ongoing efforts to address developmental needs in Kavango West, though implementation and equitable distribution remain key concerns for regional leadership.