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Nawa 39 |
Oct 13 2005 |
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NAMIBIA PROCLAIMS MORE CONSERVANCIES
 USAID has been the primary donor supporting the conservancy movement in Namibia over the last 13 years through direct funding and technical assistance through Government and NGO partners. On September 20, 2005, 11 new conservancies were formally registered, bringing the total number of those registered to 42. The amount of land under conservancy management has increased to 40,479 square miles (12.7% of the total land area of Namibia, and 33% of communal land area in Namibia) involving over 120,000 communal area residents. Rural communities living on communal lands are moving to attain legal rights over their natural resources with a view to better their living conditions. Communal area conservancies have become a very popular vehicle for attaining rights over wildlife, which has become a source of direct financial benefit in the form of trophy hunting fees, tourism revenues and a source of food. Conservancies have also become a mechanism to organize communities for better decision-making and collective management of their surrounding resources, including grazing for domestic livestock.
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INVESTOR ROAD MAP WELCOMED BY GOVERNMENT AND PRIVATE SECTOR
 The Government of Namibia is embarking on a program to reverse the trend in Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) flows which declined from US$ 325 million in 2001 to only US$ 84 million in 2003.
Domestic and foreign investors planning to invest in Namibia will soon benefit from a more investor-friendly business climate. A number of recommendations have been proposed that will simplify the investment and regulatory framework and reduce the time and costs incurred by investors in starting businesses in Namibia.
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Recommendations were made in the Namibia Investor Road Map report prepared with technical assistance supplied by the USAID-funded Southern Africa Regional Trade Hub based in Gaborone and presented at a seminar held at in Windhoek on 15 September, 2005.
The Namibia Investor Roadmap is a comprehensive and detailed diagnostic study of individual steps required of investors to establish and operate a business in Namibia. It recommends a number of policy, regulatory and procedural changes that will reduce the time and costs involved in starting a business in Namibia. The recommendations were developed in consultation with Namibian businesses and Government Ministries. The Government is expected to implement the recommendations as soon as possible to create a more investor-friendly business climate that will attract increased foreign investment and will make Namibia more competitive.
Prime Minister Nahas Angula spoke at the occasion, and while thanking USAID for the technical assistance, assured business and industry that the Government will review the recommendations of the report and develop an action plan for implementation. He also observed that in several sectors Namibia needs modern technology and foreign investment to make it competitive, create jobs to fight severe unemployment and increase incomes.
In his remarks, Mr. Gary Newton, USAID Director, observed: "There are a host of good reasons to invest in Namibia and to do business in Namibia; among them, talented people, very good infrastructure, political stability and an emerging —energetic — democracy. That said, competition is fierce. According to this report, there is still a great deal that needs to be done to improve the investment climate and enhance Namibia’s competitiveness. By reducing barriers to investment and improving the environment for business, Namibia could well set the benchmark for competitiveness for the entire Southern African region." |
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TACKLING ALCOHOL ABUSE AND HIV AT THE COMMUNITY-LEVEL
 Harold Swartz was concerned about the number of illegal shebeens (local bars) in his community of Rehoboth not only because of usual negative effects of alcoholism, but because alcohol abuse contributes to high risk behavior and gender violence — both elements that fuel the HIV/AIDS epidemic in Namibia. In Rehoboth, approximately 14% of the community is already HIV positive and throughout Namibia nearly one in 5 individuals has HIV. With support from USAID, community members such as Harold Swartz receive training and resources to start HIV/AIDS Community Action Forums (CAF) in their towns. The CAF members work to increase awareness about HIV/AIDS and prevent the underlying causes fueling the epidemic in their communities.
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As chairperson of the CAF in the town of Rehoboth, Harold worked with the 7 other CAF members to tackle the problem of illegal shebeens in two ways. Harold traveled to the town of Walvis Bay to visit with their District AIDS Committee to learn how it had addressed the same problem. From this experience Harold and the other CAF members developed an action plan for Rehoboth and worked with the National Shebeen Association, which is responsible for regulating shebeen licenses, hours of sale and to whom alcohol is sold.
Harold and other CAF members also received USAID sponsored training on basic HIV/AIDS facts, and testing and treatment services available in the community. Harold drew upon this knowledge to mobilize CAF members and establish partnerships with other organizations to start HIV/AIDS awareness and information sessions in the shebeens themselves. To date, 12 awareness sessions have taken place with growing demand for more.
At a recent shebeen session, a married woman wanted to know how to negotiate safer sex practices by asking, "How do I all of a sudden ask my husband to use a condom after 15 years of marriage, just because I think he is sleeping with other women?"Her question and others at the shebeen sessions demonstrate that a platform has been created where all individuals feel comfortable receiving information and asking important questions. To encourage community members to take action to prevent HIV infection, the CAF distributes vouchers so that individuals can obtain a free HIV test and counseling at the local New Start counseling and testing center.
With funds from the U.S. President`s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief, USAID supports Johns Hopkins University to work with HIV/AIDS Community Action Forums in 13 communities throughout Namibia. Harold`s experience illustrates how CAFs are playing a key role in their communities to address a matter with life or death consequences for their fellow residents by promoting HIV awareness and tackling the difficult underlying factors contributing to the spread of HIV/AIDS. |
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DIAMONDS IN THE VILLAGE
 "When I finish school one day, I would like to become a doctor, so that I can return to my village and heal all the sick people...there are too many of them," declares ten-year old Selma when asked about her plans for the future.
Selma, Christofina and Andelina are all gifted orphans who, with seventeen other girls, were selected at Ondiamande Combined School to benefit from the Africa Education Initiative Ambassadors` Girls Scholarship Program (AGSP). This USAID-funded program provides for their basic needs of these girls (i.e. school uniform, school fees, books, etc.) to enable them to attend school.
Ondiamande Village ("diamond"in Oshiwambo) lies approximately 60km west of Ondangwa in the north of Namibia. Children in this village have little else to look forward to on an ordinary day except for rising bright and early to walk several kilometers to attend school. In the traditional villages, it is normally not a priority to enroll girls in school, let alone allow them to continue beyond primary school. Having lost their parents, these girls stand even less of a chance to enjoy the privilege of going to school.
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Apart from being orphans and academic performers, these girls have something else in common; they are compared with unpolished diamonds in the Ondiamande Village because they lack self-esteem. The teachers at participating schools attended a workshop presented by the Forum for African Women Educationalists in Namibia (FAWENA) to strengthen their capacity to initiate a mentoring program for the girls. The mentoring component is aimed at improving the girls` self-esteem, attendance, and drive to complete primary school, among other things.
Besides the benefits of staying in school, this year was a special and exciting year, because the Lifeskills teacher, Ms. Teopolina Taapopi took them on a trip to the towns of Ondangwa and Oshakati. For the first time in their lives, these children were exposed to traffic lights, cars driving on a black tarred road and large supermarkets.
As the notes of the Namibian anthem sung by them, fade in the afternoon, these girls have hope, and it is that hope of being accepted and being coached into becoming the bright, polished diamonds, returning to their village to do what they regard as the ultimate goal in a time of little hope. |
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