The Director of International Relations at the Namibia University of Science and Technology, Dr Marius Kudumo, has said until the two Kavango regions and the country at large understand what poverty is, it will not be properly addressed.
Kudumo said this in an interview with Nampa on Sunday following a public discussion held at Rundu early this month on why the two regions the poorest in Namibia and how this can be changed.
Kavango East and Kavango West are the poorest regions in the country, according to a multidimensional poverty index report by the Namibia Statistics Agency.
Kudumo said the two regions have remained poor despite being endowed with substantial natural resources such as water, forestry and fertile, arable land.
“Most of the green schemes are in these regions. There are lodges, timber harvesting and the latest – oil exploration. However, none of these activities seem to bring significant economic life,” he said.
Kudumo stated that one cause of poverty that has not been considered extensively is intellectual poverty, when people have no urge to grow and learn.
“Do we ever talk about thinking as the reason why people are poor? We must be thinking of becoming poor, because we are not thinking about improving our condition,” he said.
The director noted that the greatest poverty is not lack of money or material, but that of the mind.
“Until poverty of the mind is solved through education it will be a continuous issue for the two regions,” he added.
As a solution to addressing poverty in the two regions, Kudumo suggested that a database of expertise found in the regions be created.
Kudumo said along with his partner, he has assigned a group of young people to create such a database which will be submitted to the offices of the governors and will be available in all constituencies.
He said if for instance experts are required to promote agriculture in technology, the database should then be used as referral to locate such local experts.
Secondly, the regions should prioritise what the key economic factors are for development such as agriculture, tourism and infrastructure development.
Kudumo said if five years can be spent on these areas with actual investment, change will be observed.
Dr Gerson Sindano, a political analyst and lecturer at the University of Namibia’s Rundu campus who was also a panellist, said instead of waiting on the government, people can do more to change their situation.
He said according to the NSA, the two regions lack proper infrastructure in rural areas.
“You will find a household that owns cattle but does not have a proper housing structure,” he said.
Source: Namibia Press Agency
