The Kufamosha Information Disability Centre will host the Kufamosha Information Disability Centre Expo Volume 3 at Omuthiya in the Oshikoto region to promote social and economic inclusion of people with disabilities while creating business and networking opportunities. …
Staff Reporter A TERRIBLE turn of events saw an 18-month-old toddler killed after being run over by a reversing vehicle at Onamukulo village, while three other people died in separate road crashes in the Oshikoto and Otjozondjupa regions over the weekend. …
… Children arrive from Erongo, Oshikoto, Kavango, the //Karas Region and beyond, referred through government social workers who have nowhere else to place them,” Kangowa said.She explained that every child who arrives, whether it is Sweet Potato, the baby who fought tuberculosis, o …
… Members of the San, Ovatue, and Ovatjimba communities in the Kavango East and West, Kunene, Ohangwena, Omaheke, Omusati, Oshana, Oshikoto, Otjozondjupa and Zambezi regions were identified as recipients. …
… Director Siphokazi Kangowa told the Windhoek Observer referrals do not come only from Erongo Region but from Oshikoto, Kavango, Karas and other distant parts of the country. …
OMUTHIYA – Two remote villages in the Oshikoto region are set to benefit from solar-powered off-grid desalination plants valued at more than N$3 million, with construction expected to begin in September as part of efforts to address chronic water shortages and improve food securi …
… Steenkamp said the ministry has drilled boreholes and connected schools to community water infrastructure where feasible, while also investing in water tankers in regions facing persistent water shortages. “There are specifically some regions such as Oshikoto where the ministry h …
… The upgraded auction kraal in Okongo, in the Ohangwena region, has become a lifeline for farmers from Ohangwena, Kavango West, Oshana, Omusati and Oshikoto regions. …
… She added that in regions where permanent water infrastructure remains a challenge, the ministry has invested in water tankers. “There are specifically some regions such as Oshikoto where the ministry has invested in water tankers. …
The Kufamosha Information Disability Centre will host a six-day expo from 28 July to 2 August at Omuthiya to promote social and economic inclusion of people with disabilities, featuring 20–30 exhibitors offering products and services ranging from arts and crafts to ICT solutions and assistive technologies.
The Kufamosha Information Disability Centre will host a six-day expo from 28 July to 2 August at Omuthiya to promote social and economic inclusion of people with disabilities, featuring 20–30 exhibitors offering products and services ranging from arts and crafts to ICT solutions and assistive technologies.
An 18-month-old toddler was run over by a reversing vehicle at Onamukulo village on Saturday, while a 37-year-old man died in a head-on collision between Tsumeb and Otavi on Friday, and two others died in a separate head-on crash on the Otavi-Otjiwarongo road. The incidents occurred across the Oshikoto and Otjozondjupa regions.
Jonah Home in Walvis Bay has cared for abandoned and vulnerable children for 15 years, currently housing about 14 children with capacity for up to 20. The facility accepts children from difficult circumstances including neglect, abuse, and families affected by substance addiction.
Members of the San, Ovatue, and Ovatjimba communities have been removed from the Marginalised Communities Special Feeding Programme, which distributes quarterly food parcels including maize meal, beans, fish, beef and cooking oil. The Otjozondjupa Regional Council confirmed that vulnerable community members, including unemployed households with children, have lost access to this assistance introduced in 2005.
Jonah Home in Walvis Bay, which cares for twenty vulnerable children, faces a monthly funding shortfall exceeding N$43,000 that threatens its ability to provide basic necessities. The facility has become a de facto national repository for child protection cases from across Namibia, with children often lacking birth certificates and requiring intensive medical or psychological support.
The Northern Regional Electricity Distributor incurs N$4.5 million annually to repair sabotaged networks and replace stolen copper cables, with the worst-affected areas in Oshana, Omusati, Kavango East and Kavango West. CEO Sylvester Wayiti said the figure excludes revenue losses from power outages and broader costs including customer dissatisfaction, reputational damage, and business losses.
Two remote villages in Oshikoto region—Oluundje and Evale—will receive solar-powered off-grid desalination plants valued at more than N$3 million, with construction beginning in September to address chronic water shortages and improve food security. The systems will also incorporate community aquaculture, with water discharged from desalination used to support fish tanks with more than 1,500 fingerlings expected to mature within six months.
The agriculture ministry spokesperson said that the ministry does not decide which schools receive boreholes; that selection rests with the education ministry, which funds the programme while agriculture provides technical support during implementation.
An upgraded auction kraal in Okongo, Ohangwena region, has facilitated the sale of more than 1,100 cattle and generated close to N$10 million in turnover, with more than N$8.9 million going directly to communal farmers from five regions. The facility, which received upgraded machinery worth about N$4 million, was officially handed over this week by the environment minister and UNDP representative.
Minister of education Sanet Steenkamp says water provision to schools is primarily a rural development responsibility for regional councils, though her ministry has intervened by drilling boreholes, connecting schools to community infrastructure, and deploying water tankers in regions like Oshikoto.
The third edition of the Omuthiya Business Expo received pledges totalling N$626,026 at a gala dinner on Saturday. The funds will support the expo scheduled for October, themed "Local by Design; Crafting Competitive SMEs for Tomorrow," aimed at strengthening local economic development and supporting small and medium enterprises.
San communities cite poverty, discrimination, teenage pregnancy, and inadequate access to quality education as barriers keeping their children out of school, perpetuating cycles of marginalisation. The Women's Leadership Centre launched the San Children Embrace Education Project to address these challenges across communities in Kavango East, Oshikoto, Omaheke, and Zambezi regions.
The Women's Leadership Centre has launched the San Children Embrace Education Project to keep San children in school and support them and their communities. The project, which operated in Omaheke, Oshikoto, and Kavango East regions this year, aims to address challenges including poverty, hunger, teenage pregnancy, and discrimination that San youth face.
The Oshikoto leg of the Real Madrid Foundation Football Clinic officially launched at Omuthiya on Monday as a five-day programme aimed at equipping young footballers with skills and values including discipline, teamwork, respect and leadership.
The government has scaled down its plans to build an Ondangwa referral hospital, with Oshana governor Hofni Iipinge announcing the project will instead become a 700-bed district hospital. The feasibility study and environmental assessments have been completed, with the AfDB providing financing in collaboration with the ministries of finance and health and social services.
Governors of Ohangwena and Kunene regions have raised alarm about ongoing medicine shortages at public health facilities, with hospitals in Opuwo, Khorixas and elsewhere running low on medication for about three months. The shortages particularly affect chronic illness treatments including diabetes, hypertension, ARVs and tuberculosis medication, forcing patients to queue for long periods only to find prescribed drugs unavailable.
The Ministry of Justice and Labour Relations reports that child labour remains a serious concern in Namibia, particularly in agriculture and domestic work linked to poverty and food insecurity. The ministry recorded two cases during the financial year involving a cattle herder and domestic worker, both arrested and the children reunited with their families.
Improper disposal of disposable nappies is contributing to pollution and pressure on waste management systems in Oshikoto region, particularly in Onyaanya, Oniipa and Onayena constituencies, according to a Strategic Environmental Assessment for the regional land-use plan.
Hilma Nakashole is the only female bulldozer operator for NamWater in Oshakati, working on heavy earthmoving equipment and tipper trucks for the past nine years. She says she feels she is proving that both men and women can perform such jobs, having overcome scepticism from interviewers and colleagues.
President Netumbo Nandi-Ndaitwah said at the opening of the Omaludi Agricultural Festival in Ohangwena that development must not come at the expense of cultural identity. She noted the festival boosts the local economy through accommodation, transport, and informal trade, and announced the government will focus on improving existing agricultural schemes rather than establishing new ones.
Minister of Education, Innovation, Youth, Sport, Arts and Culture Sanet Steenkamp warned that Namibia risks future instability if young people are excluded from governance, economic opportunities and decision-making. She noted that 37% of Namibia's population is under age 15 and that youth should be treated as partners in governance and development rather than as a problem to manage.
Ombudsman Basilius Dyakugha has raised concerns about severe overcrowding in police holding cells across eight northern regions, with facilities such as Omuthiya and Oshakati police stations holding over 800 inmates each, and Katima Mulilo holding over 280 inmates in cells designed for 80. Dyakugha attributed the overcrowding to prolonged case finalization, lack of bail releases, and lengthy investigations.
An animal auction at Oshaambelo Production Development Centre in Omusati sold 65 of 118 animals for N$373,150, with an auctioneer attributing low buyer participation to preference for informal trade. The ministry and livestock board support monthly auctions in the Northern Communal Areas to help farmers obtain fair prices through competition.
A fire in Okakoko Village, Oshikoto region, claimed the lives of two three-year-old girls on Sunday morning while they slept in a corrugated iron structure. The blaze broke out while a domestic worker was gathering firewood; authorities are investigating the cause.
Namibia's annual inflation rate slowed to 3.1% in April 2026, though transport and fuel costs remain under pressure. Consumers in northern regions (zone 1) paid the highest diesel price at N$24.31 per litre, while Khomas residents (zone 2) paid the lowest at N$24.12.
An opinion piece argues that Namibia's pharmaceutical shortages in public hospitals and clinics are creating opportunity for traditional healers and sangomas, who operate without supply-chain constraints and face no medication stock problems.
National Council members have criticised the government's N$1.27-billion water and marine resources budget, saying many rural communities continue to face severe shortages despite repeated promises. Parliamentarians called for urgent implementation of stalled projects and warned that bureaucracy continues to delay access to clean water across the country.
Martha Uupindi, 23, from Windhoek has been diagnosed with severe aplastic anaemia and is appealing to the public for assistance to fund a bone marrow transplant in South Africa. The family needs around N$200 000 for additional expenses such as travel, accommodation, medication and daily support, as Psemas is expected to cover most major medical costs.
Oshikoto governor Sacky Kathindi said the region needs approximately N$22 million to comprehensively address water challenges affecting communities. The region recently secured N$6.4 million from the Environmental Investment Fund of Namibia for the initial phase, with technical assessments underway to determine boreholes for drilling and rehabilitation.
Oshikoto governor Sacky Kathindi has announced an initiative to desalinate the region's saline underground water for drinking and irrigation, while using the brine by-product for fish farming. The region has secured N$6.4 million from the Environmental Investment Fund, with plans to diversify livelihoods in water-stressed constituencies through aquaculture training and development.