Nawa 49

June 19 2007

“I would like to be President (of Namibia) one day.” A wonderful dream voiced by a confident, articulate young woman named Martha, one of the 56 girls from the Namibian San community gathered in Windhoek for the All San Girls’ Workshop. The workshop was sponsored by the U.S. Ambassador’s Girls’ Scholarship Program and funded by USAID under the Africa Education Initiative (AEI). At the conference, organized by the Forum for African Women Educationalists in Namibia (FAWENA), the girls received encouragement to continue their education and participated in activities to help build their resilience, self-esteem, and leadership skills. The workshop also faced head-on sensitive issues such as early marriage, early pregnancy and the risk of HIV/AIDS.

The five-day conference was opened by US Ambassador to Namibia, Joyce Barr and Deputy Minister of Education, Dr. Becky Ndjoze-Ojo. The Deputy Minister’s remarks, and those of other speakers, were full of appreciation to USAID, the United States Government (USG) and the American people. Deputy Minister Ndjoze-Ojo stressed that though the money comes through the government, “It really represents the goodwill of the American people.” She said to the girls, “America is the land of dreams and they are helping your dreams to come true.” Both the Deputy Minister and Ambassador Barr urged the girls to take advantage of this opportunity, never let go of their dreams and not let poverty keep them from achieving great things.

Ambassador Barr said, “The U.S. is proud to fund a program that is helping a talented and gifted group of girls to stay in school and do well in school. Educating girls strengthens Namibian society as a whole. Today’s educated girls will become tomorrow’s teachers, business women, and scientists.”

As of 2006, the U.S. Government has provided approximately $385 million Namibian dollars to improve the quality of education and lessen the impact of HIV/AIDS on the education sector in Namibia. Currently, the Girls’ Scholarship Program is supporting 950 vulnerable girls in Namibian primary schools. 100 of these scholarships go to San girls. The San people were Southern Africa’s “first people.” Today, they are among the most marginalized and poorest communities in Namibia. The scholarship program pays for school uniforms, supplies, boarding and lodging fees, and counseling.

“Let’s Stop TB Together!” Namibia’s World TB Day Commemoration

Surrounded by brilliant yellow posters urging, “Coughing for three weeks – get tested!” and “On Treatment for TB – complete it!” USAID/NAMIBIA Mission Director Gary Newton congratulated the Namibian Ministry of Health and Social Services, the TB Control Assistance Program (TBCAP) and their partners on the progress made since the last World TB Day in the fight against TB.

With support from USAID and the President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR), Namibia has increased its TB treatment success rate from 70% in 2004 to 75% in 2005; TB cases notified per hundred thousand population decreased from 809 in 2005 to 765 in 2006; the proportion of TB patients tested for HIV from 16% in 2005 to 30% in 2006; TB screening is now a standard-of-care for all patients seen in ART clinics; and, regions have established regular quarterly review meetings, creating a forum to enhance TB-HIV collaboration.

Director Newton stressed the continued burden TB places, often on those least able to afford it; the impoverished and those whose immune systems are weakened by HIV/AIDS. “There is much more work to be done, and impeding an already difficult task is the specter of drug resistant TB which is virtually untreatable and almost universally fatal to people who are HIV-positive.” Voicing his appreciation to USAID, Dr. Kamwi, Namibian Minister of Health and Social Services, highlighted the significant and increasing USG support to Namibia’s fight against TB.

With USG support experts from the Namibian Ministry of Health and Social Services and the Namibia Institute of Pathology attended a high-level, multinational meeting on TB in Washington D.C. to discuss how to accelerate integrated responses to TB and HIV/AIDS and the looming problem of multi-drug and extreme drug resistance. In Namibia, through 2006, $2 million US dollars have been provided by USAID and US $580,000 under the U.S. President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR). In 2007, these amounts are expected to increase, providing an additional US $1.2 million dollars through USAID, and an additional US $1.6 million under the Emergency Plan.

“We came up with a simple concept that enables people to understand the essential foul play that is corruption” enthused Doris Kellner, program manager of the Zero Tolerance for Corruption Campaign.

USAID Small Business Project Nets Big Gains

“Today, we have a fully fleshed distribution chain.  Thank you, through the support of this program we have established distribution networks in the region,” a quote from a grateful project client, the Cactus Agency, a cosmetics import and export business.

Development partners, business owners and government officials recently celebrated the successful completion of the Namibian Regional Trade Program funded by USAID and implemented by Development Alternatives Inc. The goals of this project were impressive – to build the capacity and competitiveness of small and medium enterprises (SMEs) to export regionally; increase domestic production and sales; improve business management; implement a market information service and promote regional trade linkages. These goals were met and exceeded.

In just two years, this project supported 87 SMEs, enabling them to generate sales of over $6.8 million US dollars; 142 SME owners and managers were trained and 714 jobs were created and/or sustained. The CEO of the Namibian Chamber of Commerce thanked USAID for its support and said, “This project could not have come at a better time.” He highlighted that as an implementing partner, the project has built their institutional capacity and as a result, they have decided to sustain and expand on these services.

"Now I now know why, there's Sunshine in my life, Yeah!"

Uitani Childline Radio is a weekly one hour radio program produced for and by children between 8 and 14 years old. It explores how children deal with the challenges they face on a daily basis and aims to provide youth with the help and the tools they need to tackle these problems. The children and young people that participate get the chance to learn new skills that can empower and uplift them as well as their peers.

Uitani Childline Radio is funded by USAID and UNICEF and is produced in collaboration with the Windhoek College of the Arts.